Part 2 (1/2)

with h not in any great quantity, but we didthat there was gold We had now been thirteen ear were much worn, and the men tired We resolved, after consultation, to beach the shi+ps and heave thea course for Spain When we made this decision ere near _the finest harbour in the world_, which we entered with our shi+ps Here we found a great many people, who received us in a very friendly manner On shore we uns, at which we all rejoiced Here we lightened[80]

and cleared our shi+ps, and hauled the all the repairs that were necessary, the people of the country giving us allus with provisions For in that port we had little relish for our ohich weshort, and were bad

We ree, where they received us with great honour When anted to resue, they made a complaint how, at certain times, a very cruel and hostile tribe came by way of the sea to their land, murderedthem off to their own houses and land They added that they were scarcely able to defend thens that their eneues out at sea They said this so earnestly that we believed theave theo with us, but we did not wish to take thereed that seven should accompany us, on condition that they went in their own canoe For we did not want to be obliged to take them back to their land; and they were content So we took leave of those people, leavingbeen repaired, we navigated for seven days across the sea, with the _wind_[81] between north-east and east, and at the end of the seven days we came upon the islands, which were numerous, some inhabited and others deserted We anchored off one of the ood men, and placed three rounds of the bombard in each, we pulled to the shore, where we found 400 men and ood fighting men, for they were arreater part of them also had square shi+elds, and they carried the the bow As we approached the shore in the boats, at the distance of a bowshot, they all rushed into the water to shoot their arrows, and to defend themselves from us they returned to the land They all had their bodies painted with different colours, and were adorned with feathers The interpreters told us that when they showed then that they intend to fight They so persevered in defending the landing that ere obliged to use our artillery When they heard the report, and saw some of their own people fall dead, they all retreated inland After holding a consultation, we resolved to land forty of our men, and await their attack The ainst us, and fought us for nearly an hour,[83] gaining little advantage, except that our cross-bow unners killed some of the natives, while they wounded some of our people They would not wait for the thrust of our spears or swords, but we pushed on with such vigour at last that we came within sword-thrust, and as they could not withstand our ar us victorious on the field, with many of their dead and wounded We did not continue the pursuit that day, because ere very tired In returning to the shi+ps, the seven ht that they could not contain thereat nuns of war, sounding horns and various other instruments used by them for defiance, and all plu to behold theether, and it was concluded that these people desired hostility with us It was then decided that we should do all in our power to make friends with them, and if they rejected our friendshi+p we should treat them as enemies, and that we shouldarmed as well as our means admitted, we returned to the shore They did not oppose our landing, I believe frouns Forty of our men landed in four detach battle, ht

We followed in pursuit until we ca taken nearly 250 prisoners[84] We burnt the village and returned to the shi+ps with these 250 prisoners, leaving many killed and wounded On our side no more than _one was killed, and twenty-tounded_, who all recovered God be thanked! We prepared to depart, and the sevento the island, and with seven prisoners that we gave them, four women and three men, they returned to their land with much joy, astonished at our power We made sail for Spain with 222 prisoners,[85] our slaves, and arrived in the port of Cadiz on the 15th of October 1498, where ell received, and where we sold our slaves This is what befell e, that was most worthy of note

THE FIRST VOYAGE ENDS

SECOND VOYAGE OF AMERIGO VESPUCCI

As regards the second voyage, what I saw in it most worthy of mention is as follows: We left the port of Cadiz, with three shi+ps,[86] on the 16th of May 1499, and shaped our course direct for the Cape Verde islands, passing in sight of the island of Grand Canary; and we navigated until we reached an island which is called the island of FUOCO Here we got in our supplies of wood and water, and thence shaped our course to the south-west In forty-four days we caed it to be the mainland, continuous with that of which mention has already been made This land is within the Torrid Zone, and beyond the equinoctial line on the south side, over which the Pole rises from the meridian 5, beyond every climate It is distant froues We found the day and night to be equal, because we arrived on the 27th of June, when the sun is near the tropic of Cancer We found this land to be all drowned, and full of very great rivers At first we did not see any people We anchored our shi+ps and got our boats out, going with them to the land, which, as I have said, we found to be full of very large rivers, and drowned by these great rivers There we tried in reat waters and rivers, in spite of so much labour, we could not find a place that was not inundated

We saw, along the rivers,ascertained that we could not enter from this part, we determined to return to the shi+ps, and to try another part We weighed our anchors, and navigated between the east south-east, coasting along the land, which trended southwards, and ues, but all was time lost We found on this coast that the current of the sea had such force that it prevented us fro, for it ran froation that, after a consultation, we decided upon altering the course to north, and wethe land, that we reached a e island, which was at the entrance[88]

Within, a very large haven was for the island to enter ittheuesin this e had seen a canoe, which was co from seaward, with many people on board We determined to overhaul her, and ent round with our shi+ps in her direction, so that wetowards the canoe with a fresh breeze,that they had stopped with their oars tossed--I believe, onder at the sight of our shi+ps But when they saw that ere gaining upon thean to roards the land As our coot to ard of the canoe, and when it seemed time to bear down upon her, the sheets were eased off so as to co down upon her, and those on board did not wish to be caught, they pulled away to leeward, and, seeing their advantage, they gave ith their oars to escape As we had our boats at the stern well ht we should catch the canoe The boats chased for more than two hours, and at last the caravel made another tack, but could not fetch the canoe As the people in the canoe saw they were closely pressed by the caravel and the boats, they all ju about seventy ues Following the the whole day, ere unable to captureon shore Only four boys remained in the canoe, ere not of their tribe, but prisoners from some other land They had been castrated, and were all without the virile member, and with the scars fresh, at which ondered ns that they had been castrated to be eaten We then knew that the people in the canoe belonged to a tribe called _Cambali_, very fiercethe canoe astern, approaching the land, and anchored at a distance of half a league We saw a great number of people on the beach, so ent on shore with the boats, taking with us the two men we had captured When we came near all the people fled into the wood So we released one of our prisoners, giving hins that anted to be their friends He did anted very well, and brought back all the people with hi about 400 ood understanding was established with them; we released the other prisoner, sent to the shi+ps for their canoe, and restored it to the, and two _braccia_[89]

in width, all dug out of a single tree, and very orked When they had hauled it up and put it in a secure place, they all fled, and would not have anything ed them to be a faithless and ill-conditioned people We saw a little gold, which they wear in their ears

We departed and entered the bay, where we found so many people that it onderful We made friends with thereat security In this place we collected 150 pearls, which they gave us for a s In this land we found that they drank wine made from their fruits and seeds, like beer, both white and red The best was reat ood fruit, pleasant to the taste, and wholesome for the body The land abounds in their articles of food, and the people are of good manners, and the most peaceful we have yetit very much, and every day new people fro at our faces and the whiteness of our skins, at our clothes and arms, and at the shape and size of our shi+ps Fros that there was another tribe to the ho were their enemies, and who had an immense quantity of pearls Those which they possessed had been taken in their wars They told us how they were fished, and in what manner the pearls were born, and we found their infornificence will hear

We left this port and sailed along the coast, always seeing people on the beach, and at the end of many days we ca one of our shi+ps, which made much water Here we found many people, but were unable, either by force or persuasion, to establish any intercourse with the fiercely, and when they could do nothat they were such barbarians we departed thence, and, sailing onwards, we caues fro to see whether it was inhabited We found on it the most bestial and the most brutal race that has ever been seen, and they were of this kind They were very brutish in appearance and gesture, and they had their reen herb, which they continually chewed like beasts, so that they could hardly speak; and each had round his neck two dry gourds, one full of that herb which they had in their mouths, and the other of white flour that appeared to be powdered lime From time to time they put in the poith a spindle which they kept wet in the mouth Then they put stuff into theirthe herb already in use They did this withseemed wonderful, for we could not understand the secret, or hat object they did it[91]

These people, when they saw us, came to us with much familiarity, as if we had for with the fresh water, they ns that they had none, and offered their herb and powder; from which we concluded that the island was ill-provided ater, and that they kept this herb in their mouths to keep off thirst We walked over the island for a day and a half, without finding a spring of water, andthat the water they drank hat had fallen during the night on certain leaves which looked like ass's ears, and held the water, and of this they drank It was excellent water; and these leaves are not found in many places They had no kind of meat,[92] and no roots, as on the ht in the sea, of which they had great abundance, and they were very good fishere and excellent fish Their women did not have the herb in their ourd ater, froes nor houses, but merely live under bowers of leaves, which shade theh not from the rain But I believe that it seldo out at sea they all have a very large leaf, and of such width that it forms a shade As the sun rises, so they raise the leaf, and thus they protect themselves from the sun

The island contains many ani that it offered no profit whatever, we departed and went to another island We found that this other island was inhabited by very tall people We landed to see whether there was any fresh water, and not thinking it was inhabited, as we had not seen anyone, we ca along the beach We judged that if the other measurements were in proportion to those of their feet, theyin search, we caing that there could not be many inhabitants, as the island was small, alked over it to see what sort of people they were When we had gone[93] about a leaguefive huts, which appeared to be uninhabited, in a valley, and ent to them But we only found five women, two old, and three children of such lofty stature that, for the wonder of the thing, anted to keep thehtened that they had not the power to run away The two old woan to invite us ords, and to set before us s, and took us into a hut They were taller than a large li Albizi, but better proportioned Our intention was to take the young girls by force, and to bring the this design there entered by the door of the hut as er than the wo to behold them They, in like manner, put us into such a state of perturbation that we rather wished ere on board, than having dealings with such people They carried very large bows and arrows, and great clubs with knobs They talked a the ourselves in such danger, we estions one to another Some proposed that we should attack them in the hut, and others said that it would be better to do so outside, while others advised that we should not take any action until hat the natives were going to do We at last agreed to go out of the hut, and walk away in the direction of the shi+ps as if nothing had happened, and this we did Having taken our route to return to the shi+ps, they also ca behind us at a distance of about a stone's-throw, talking a themselves I believe they had not less fear of us than we of them; for someti nearer At last we caot in, and, ere some way from the shore, the natives rushed down and shot many arrows; but we then had little fear of thehten them than to do them harm They all fled into the woods, and so we took leave of theerous adventure They all went naked like the others We called this island _the Island of the Giants_, by reason of their stature[94]

We proceeded onwards along the coast, and there happened to be combats with the nativesfro to Castille, having been on the sea for nearly a year[95] and the provisions being nearly exhausted, the little that reed by the heat

For from the time that we left the islands of Cape Verde until noe had been continually navigating within the Torrid Zone, and te had crossed the equinoctial line; for, as I said before, ent 5 beyond it to the south, and noere in 15[96] to the north Being in this state of ive us so for a port in which to repair our shi+ps, we came upon a people who received us with reat quantity of oriental pearls, and exceedingly good ones We stayed with them forty-seven days, and obtained from thee I believe the pearls did not cost us the value of forty ducats What we gave thelasses, and beads,[97] and ten bells, and tin foil For one bell a native gave all the pearls he had Here we learnt how they fished for theave us many shells in which they are born We bartered for a shell in which were born 130 pearls, and in others less This one of 130 the Queen took, and others I put aside that they nificence must know that if the pearls are not mature, and are not detached, they soon perish, and of this I have had experience When they are mature, they are detached in the shell, and are placed areater part were cracked and badly bored Nevertheless they are worth a good deal of money when sold in the market

At the end of forty-seven days we took leave of these very friendly natives We departed, and, for the sake of obtaining s of which ere in need, we shaped a course for the island of _Antiglia_,[98]

being that which Christopher Coluo Here we took many supplies on board, and remained two ers and troubles from the same Christians ere in this island with Columbus I believe this was caused by envy; but to avoid prolixity, I will refrain fro what happened We departed from the said island on the 22nd of July,[100]

and after a voyage of a month and a half, we entered the port of Cadiz on the 8th of Septee God be praised