Richard Hakluyt, The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques, and Discoveries of the English Nation

---

---

Chap. 3.
Wherein is shewed, how that after we were escaped from the Spaniards, wee were like to perish with famine at the Sea, and how our Generall, for the avoiding thereof was constrained to put halfe of his men on land, and what miseries wee after that sustained amongst the Savage people, and how againe we fell into the hands of the Spaniards.

AFTER that the Viceroy, Don Martin Henriques, had thus contrary to his faith and promise, most cruelly dealt with our Generall master Hawkins, at S. John de Ullua, where most of his men were by the Spaniards slaine and drowned, and all his ships sunke and burned, saving the Minion, and the Judith, which was a small barke of fiftie tunne, wherein was then Captaine master Francis Drake aforesayd: the same night the said barke lost us, we being in great necessitie, and inforced to remoove with the Minion two bow-shoote from the Spanish fleete, where we ankered all that night: and the next morning wee weyed anker, arid recovered an Island a mile from the Spaniards, where a storme tooke us with a North winde, in which we were greatly distressed, having but two cables and two ankers left: for in the conflict before we had lost three cables and two ankers. The morrow after, the storme being ceased and the weather faire, we weied, and set sayle, being many men in number, and but small store of victuals to suffice us for any long time: by meanes whereof we were in despaire and feare that we should perish through famine, so that some were in minde to yeelde themselves to the mercy of the Spaniards, other some to the Savages or Infidels, and wandring thus certaine daies in these unknowen seas, hunger constrained us to eate hides, cats and dogs, mice, rats, parrats and munkies: to be short, our hunger was so great, that wee thought it savourie and sweete whatsoever wee could get to eate.

And on the eight of October wee came to land againe, in the bottome of the bay of Mexico , where we hoped to have found some inhabitants, that wee might have had some reliefe of victuals, and a place where to repaire our ship, which was so greatly bruised, that we were scarse able with our weary armes to keepe foorth the water: being thus oppressed with famine on the one side and danger of drowning on the other, not knowing where to find reliefe, wee began to be in wonderfull despaire, and we were of many mindes, amongst whom there were a great many that did desire our Generall to set them on land, making their choise rather to submit themselves to the mercie of the Savages or Infidels, then longer to hazard themselves at sea, where they very well sawe, that if they should remaine together, if they perished not by drowning, yet hunger would inforce them in the ende to eate one another: to which request our Generall did very willingly agree, considering with himselfe that it was necessary for him to lessen his number, both for the safetie of himselfe & the rest: and therupon being resolved to set halfe his people ashore that he had then left alive, it was a world to see how suddenly mens minds were altered: for they which a little before desired to be set on land, were now of another minde, and requested rather to stay: by meanes whereof our Generall was inforced for the more contentation of all mens minds, and to take away all occasions of offence, to take this order: First he made choice of such persons of service and account, as were needefull to stay, and that being done, of those which were willing to goe he appointed such as he thought might be best spared, and presently appointed that by the boat they should bee set on shore, our Generall promising us that the next yeere he would either come himselfe, or else send to fetch us home. Here againe it would have caused any stony heart to have relented to heare the pitifull mone that many did make, and howe loth they were to depart: the weather was then somewhat stormy and tempestuous, and therefore we were to passe with great danger, yet notwithstanding there was no remedy, but we that were appointed to goe away, must of necessitie doe so. Howbeit those that went in the first boat were safely set on shore, but of them which went in the second boate, of which number I my selfe was one, the seas wrought so high, that we could not attaine to the shore, and therefore we were constrained through the cruell dealing of John Hampton captaine of the Minion, and John Sanders boatswaine of the Jesus, and Thomas Pollard his mate, to leape out of the boate into the maine sea, having more then a mile to shore, and so to shift for our selves, and either to sinke or swimme. And of those that so were (as it were) throwen out, and compelled to leape into the sea, there were two drowned, which were of captaine Blands men.

In the evening of the same day, it being Munday the eight of October, 1568, when we were all come to shore, we found fresh water, whereof some of our men drunke so much, that they had almost cast themselves away, for wee could scarse get life of them for the space of two or three houres after: other some were so cruelly swollen, what with the drinking in of the salt water, and what with the eating of the fruit which wee found on land, having a stone in it much like an almond (which fruit is called Capule) that they were all in very ill case, so that we were in a maner all of us both feeble, faint and weake.

The next morning being Tewsday, the ninth of October, we thought it best to travell along by the sea coast, to seeke out some place of habitation: (whether they were Christians or Savages, we were indifferent, so that we might have wherewithall to sustaine our hungry bodies) and so departing from an hill where we had rested all night, not having any drie threed about us, (for those that were not wet being not throwen into the sea, were thorowly wet with raine, for all the night it rained cruelly :) As we went from the hil, and were come into the plaine, we were greatly troubled to passe for the grasse and weedes that grewe there higher then any man. On the left hand we had the sea, and upon the right hand great woods, so that of necessitie we must needs pass on our way Westward, through those marshes; and going thus, suddenly we were assaulted by the Indians, a warlike kind of people, which are in a maner as Canibals, although they doe not feede upon mans flesh as Canibals doe.

These people are called Chichimici, and they use to weare their haire long, even down to their knees, they doe also colour their faces greene, yellow, red and blew, which maketh them to seeme very ougly and terrible to beholde. These people doe keepe warres against the Spaniards, of whom they have bene oftentimes very cruelly handled: for with the Spaniards there is no mercy. They perceiving us at our first comming on land, supposed us to have bene their enemies, the bordering Spaniards, and having by their forerunners descried what number we were, and how feeble and weake without armour or weapon, they suddenly according to their accustomed maner, when they encounter with any people in warlike sorte, raised a terrible and huge crie, and so came running fiercely upon us, shooting off their arrowes as thicke as haile, unto whose mercy we were constrained to yeeld, not having amongst us any kind of armour, nor yet weapon, saving one caliver, and two old rustie swords, whereby to make any resistance, or to save our selves: which when they perceived, that wee sought not any other then favour and mercie at their handes, and that we were not their enemies the Spaniards, they had com passion on us, and came and caused us all to sit down: and when they had a while surveyed, and taken a perfect view of us, they came to all such as had any coloured clothes amongst us, and those they did strip starke naked, and tooke their clothes away with them, but those that were apparelled in blacke they did not meddle withall, and so went their wayes, and left us without doing us any further hurt, onely in the first brunt they killed eight of our men. And at our departure, they perceiving in what weake case we were, pointed us with their hands which way we should go to come to a towne of the Spaniards, which as we afterwards perceived, was not past ten leagues from thence, using these words: Tampice, Tampice, Christiano, Tampice Christiano, which is as much (we thinke) as to say in English, at Tampice you shall find the Christians. The weapons that they use are no other but bowes and arrowes, and their arme is so good, that they very seldome misse to hit any thing that they shoote at. Shortly after they had left us stript (as aforesayd) we thought it best to devide our selves into two companies, and so being separated, halfe of us went under the leading of one Anthony Godard, who is yet a man alive, and dwelleth at this instant in the towne of Plimmouth, whom before we chose to be captaine over us all, and those which went under his leading, of which number I Miles Philips was one, travailed Westward that way which the Indians with their hands had before pointed us to go. The other halfe went under the leading of one John Hooper, whom they did choose for their captain, & with the company that went with him, David Ingram was one, and they tooke their way and travelled Northward, and shortly after, within the space of two dayes, they were againe incountered with the savage people, and their captaine Hooper and two more of his company were slaine: then againe they divided themselves, and some held on their way still Northward, and other some, knowing that we were gone Westward, sought to meet with us againe, as in truth there was about the number of 25 or 26 of them that met with us in the space of foure dayes againe, and then we began to reckon amongst our selves, how many wee were that were set on shore, and we found the number to be an hundred and foureteene, whereof two were drowned in the sea, and eight were slaine at the first incounter, so that there remained an hundred and foure, of which 25 went Westward with us, and 52 to the North with Hooper and Ingram: and as Ingram since hath often told me, there were not past three of their company slaine, and there were but sixe and twenty of them that came againe to us, so that of the company that went Northward, there is yet lacking, and not certainely heard of, the number of three and twenty men. And verely I doe thinke that there are of them yet alive, and married in the said countrey, at Cibola, as hereafter I purpose (God willing) to discourse of more particularly, with the reason and causes that make mee so to thinke of them that were lacking, which were David Ingram, Twide, Browne, and sundry others, whose names wee could not remember. And being thus met againe together, we travelled on still Westward, sometime thorow such thicke woods, that we were inforced with cudgels to breake away the brambles and bushes from tearing our naked bodies: other sometimes we should travell thorow the plaines, in such high grasse that wee could scarse see one another, and as we passed in some places, we should have of our men slaine, and fall downe suddenly, being strooken by the Indians, which stood behinde trees and bushes, in secret places, and so killed our men as they went by, for wee went scatteringly in seeking of fruites to relieve our selves. We were also oftentimes greatly annoyed with a kind of flie, which in the Indian tongue is called Tequani, and the Spaniards called them Muskitos. There are also in the sayd countrey a number of other kinde of flies, but none so noysome as these Tequanies bee: you shall hardly see them they be so small, for they are scarse so big as a gnat; they will sucke ones blood marveilously, and if you kill them while they are sucking, they are so venimous that the place will swell extremely, even as one that is stoong with a Waspe or Bee: but if you let them sucke their fill, and to goe away of themselves, then they doe you no other hurt, but leave behinde them a red spot somewhat bigger then a flea-biting. At the first wee were terribly troubled with these kinde of flies, not knowing their qualities, and resistance wee could make none against them, being naked: as for cold wee feared not any, the countrey there is alwayes so warme. And as we travelled thus for the space of tenne or twelve dayes, our captaine did oftentimes cause certaine to goe up into the toppes of high trees, to see if they could descrie any towne or place of inhabitants, but they could not perceive any, and using often the same order to climbe up into high trees, at the length they descried a great river that fell from the Northwest into the maine sea, and presently after, we heard an harquebuze shot off, which did greatly incourage us, for thereby wee knew that we were neere to some Christians, and did therefore hope shortly to finde some succour and comfort, and within the space of one houre after, as we travelled, we heard a cocke crowe, which was also no small joy unto us, and so we came to the North side of the river of Panuco, where the Spaniards have certaine Salines, at which place it was that the harquebuze was shot off, which before we heard: to which place we went not directly, but missing thereof, we left it about a bow-shot upon our left hand: of this river we dranke very greedily, for wee had not met with any water in sixe dayes before, and as we were here by the river side resting our selves, and longing to come to the place where the cocke did crowe, and where the harquebuze was shot off, we perceived many Spaniards upon the other side of the river, riding up and downe on horsebacke, and they perceiving us, did suppose that we had beene of the Indians their bordering enemies, the Chichimeci: the river was not past halfe a bowe shoot over: and presently one of the Spaniards tooke an Indian boate called a Canoa, and so came over, being rowed by two Indians, and having taken the view of us, did presently rowe over backe againe to the Spaniards, who without any delay made cut about the number of twenty horsemen, and imbarking themselves in the Canoas, they led their horses by the reines swimming over after them, and being come over to that side of the river where we were, they sadled their horses, and being mounted upon them with their lances charged, they came very fiercely running at us. Our captaine Anthony Godard seeing them come in that order, did perswade us to submit and yeelde our selves unto them, for being naked, as we at this time were, and without weapon, we could not make any resistance, whose bidding we obeied, and upon the yeelding of our selves, they perceived us to be Christians, and did call for more Canoas, and caried us over by foure and foure in a boat, and being come on the other side, they understanding by our captaine how long we had bene without meate, imparted between two and two a loafe of bread made of that countrey wheat, which the Spaniards call Maiz, of the bignesse of our halfepenie loaves, which bread is named in the Indian tongue Clashacally. This bread was very sweete and pleasant unto us, for we had not eaten any in a long time before: and what is it that hunger doth not make to have a savory and a delicate taste? And having thus parted the bread amongst us, those which were men they sent afore to the towne, having also many Indians inhabitants of that place to garde them: they which were yong, as boyes, and some such also as were feeble, they tooke up upon their horses, behind them, and so caried us to the towne where they dwelt, which was very neere distant a mile from the place where we came over.

This towne is well situated, and well replenished with all kindes of fruits, as Orenges, Limons, Pomegranates, Apricoks, and Peaches, and sundry others, and is inhabited with a great number of tame Indians, or Mexicans, and had in it also at that time about the number of two hundred Spaniards, men, women, and children, besides Negros. Of their Salines, which lie upon the West side of the river, more then a mile distant from thence, they make a great profit, for it is an excellent good merchandize there: the Indians doe buy much thereof, and cary it up into the countrey, and there sell it to their owne countrey people, in doubling the price. Also much of the Salt made in this place, is transported from thence by sea to sundry other places, as to Cuba , S. John de Ullua, and the other ports of Tamiago, and Tamachos, which are two barred havens West and by South above threescore leagues from S. John de Ullua. When we were all come to the towne, the Governour there shewed himselfe very severe unto us, and threatned to hang us all: and then he demanded what money wee had, which in trueth was very little, for the Indians which we first met withall, had in a maner taken all from us, and of that which they left, the Spaniards which brought us over, tooke away a good part also: howbeit, from Anthony Godard the Governour here had a chaine of gold, which was given unto him at Carthagena, by the Governour there, and from others he had some small store of money: so that wee accounted that amongst us all he had the number of five hundred Pezos, besides the chaine of gold.

And having thus satisfied himselfe, when he had taken all that we had, he caused us to be put into a little house much like a hogstie, where we were almost smoothered: and before we were thus shut up into that little coat, they gave us some of the countrey wheate, called Mayz, sodden, which they feede their hogs withall. But many of our men which had bene hurt by the Indians at our first comming on land, whose wounds were very sore and grievous, desired to have the helpe of their Surgeons to cure their wounds. The governour, and most of them all answered, that wee should have none other Surgeon but the hangman, which should sufficiently heale us of all our griefes: and thus reviling us, and calling us. English dogs, and Lutheran heretikes, we remained the space of three dayes in this miserable state, not knowing what should become of us, waiting every houre to be bereaved of our lives.