Now Cortez seeing these Indians quiet and wel pleased, and also very seruiceable, he did determyne to take away theyr Idols, and to giue them a remembraunce of Iesu Christ borne of the Virgin Mary, by one Melchior a fisher man and very rustical, who had bin ther before with Francisco Hernandez de Cordoua, who declared vnto them, that Cortez his Lord and captaine would enforme them of a better god, and better lawes, than those which they maintained. The Indians answered, that they were contented therewith, and went with them vnto their temples, and there brake downe their Idols, and celebrated diuine seruice, teaching them to adore and worshippe Christ crucifyed, so that they were verye attentiue to the doctrine, and ceased sacrifise of men which they were wōt to vse. These Indians did wonder much at the shippes and horses, yea and marueyled as muche at our colour and beardes, so that many times they would come and féele them, and signifyed vnto them by signes and tokens towardes Yucatan, that there were fiue or sixe bearded men. Then Cortez considering how profitable it wold be to haue an interpreter to vnderstand and to be vnderstood, he besought Calachuni that he would appoint a messenger to carrye a letter to the bearded men, who were in the power of a great Lord and Tyrant, and Calachuni found none that durst take that iourney in hand, fearing that they should be slaine and eaten. Cortez seing this, entreated with faire words, thrée of the Indians that serued him to accept the iourney, and gaue thē rewards for theyr labour: yet the Indians excused them, saying that they should be slayne, notwithstanding with faire promises and rewardes, they accepted the voyage, so that Cortez wrote with them this letter following.
Worshipful sirs, I departed from Cuba with eleuen saile in my fléete, furnished with fiue hundred and fiftie Spaniardes, and I arriued here at Acusamil from whence I write you this letter. The people of this Ilād haue certifyed me, that there is in that countrey fiue or sixe bearded men, and in al pointes like vnto vs: they can not here enforme me of anye other signes or tokens, but hereby I do coniecture, and certainely beleue that ye be Spaniards. Both I and these gentlemen of my company do come to discouer and inhabit this land, we hartily pray you yt within sixe days after the receite hereof, ye come vnto vs, wtout any excuse or delay, and if ye so doe, al we of this nauie wil gratifye your gentlenesse & good seruice yt ye shal do vnto vs. I do send you a Vergantyn wherin you may come, & two shippes for your safeconduct.
Hernando Cortez.
This letter being written, there was found an inconuenience, which was, they knew not how to carrye the letter so secretly yt it might not be séene, & they taken for espies, wherof the saide Indians stoode in great feare. Thē Cortez bethought him, yt the letter wold passe wrapped in ye haire of the head of one of thē, for ordinarily the Indians wear lōg heare, & on their solemn feasts & in wars they vse their haire platted & boūd about their forheads. And he appointed captaine of the Vergantine wherin ye messēgers wēt, Iohn de Escalante, & Iames de Ordas for captaine of the other two ships, with fiftie men if any nede should happen. So shortly after the ships arriued at the place appointed, Escalante set a land his messengers, and abode there eight days they returne, although he promised thē to abide there but sixe dayes. And thē séeing that they came not, he surmysed yt they were either slaine or taken captiues: & so returned backe againe to Acusamill without his messēgers, wherof al the army were sorowful, & chiefly Cortez, thinking that the Indians had wrōg enformed him. Nowe in this meane season they trymmed their shippes of the hurte receiued by the late tempest, & at the returne of the two ships and Vergantyne, they hoysed vp sailes and departed.
A miraculous chaunce hovv Geronimo de Aguilao came to Cortez.
Calachuni and all his subiectes were full of heauinesse (as it semed) with the departure of the Christians, bycause they were wel vsed at their handes. From Acusamil the fleete sayled to get the coast of Yucatan to the cape called Womens point, with prosperous weather, & there Cortez came to an Anker, desirous to sée the disposition of the lande, and the manner of the people: but it liked him not, so that ye next day folowing being shrouetuisday, he departed, meaning to double the sayde cape, and so to passe to Cotoche and to viewe it. But before they hadde doubled the poynte, Peter de Aluarado shotte off a piece, in token that hee was in great peril, wherevppon the other shippes drewe neare to knowe what hadde happened: And when Cortez vnderstoode that Aluarados shippe was in so great a leake that with two pumpes they mighte not emptie the water, he found no other remedy but to returne backe again to Acusamil with al his fléet. The Indians of yt Ilande came incontinent to ye water side very ioyfull, and to knowe whether they had left any thing behind thē. The Christiās enformed thē of their mishap, and came a shore, & in short time found the leake & amended it. The Saterday following they toke shipping again, al the army excepte Hernando Cortez, and fiftie of his company, then the wind arose contrary, and so much, that they could not departe that day: & the furie of the winde endured al that night, but in the morning it waxed calme, so that they myghte proceede on their voyage. But for as much as that was the Sabboth daye, they determined to heare diuine seruice, and after dinner to make saile. When their seruice was ended, and Cortez sitting at his meate, there was newes brought him that a little vessell called a Canoa, came vnder saile toward the shippes, whiche seemed to come from Yucatan: with that newes Cortez arose from his meate, to behold whether the Canoa went, and perceiuyng that she left the way toward the shippes, he sente Andrew de Tapia with certaine others, as secrete & closely as might be deuised, to lye in ambushe for their comming a shoare. The Canoa arriued in a calme place, out of the which came foure men all naked, except their priuie members, and the heare of their heades platted and bound aboute their foreheades like vnto women, with bowes and arrowes in their hands: three of them which were Indians, wer afraide when they saw the Spaniards with their drawen swordes, and would haue fled againe to their Canoa, but the Christian feared not, and desired his fellowes in the Indian tong to abide with hym. And then he began to speake in the Spanish tongue in thys wise: Maisters are ye Christians, yea (quoth they) and of the Spanish nation. Then he reioyced so much, that the teares fell from his eyes, and demaunded of them what day it was, although he had a Primer wherein he dayly prayed.
The cōming of Aguilar to Cortez.