CHAPTER XXXIII.
How they went to Ergim[[BR]] Island, and of the Moors they took there.
"Just as much", said Antam Gonçalvez, "as the beginning of our voyage was troubled, so much I hope that our ending will be the better; trusting in that God who by His mercy hath united us here and saved us from so great a danger. Wherefore," said he, "as you perceive that by your landing the Moors here are all forewarned, you know well that further on from here is an island which is called Ergim; and there, I trust, if we go by night, we shall light on some Moors that we can make captives of. I tell you this, for I do not intend to undertake any matter without your counsel."
And not only did the captains say that this pleased them, but so did the others also in whose presence all had been spoken; who made haste that there might be no great delay in performing this. And as soon as the sun began to hide the rays of his brightness, and the twilight of night filled the air with its obscurity, they were all ready in their boats; taking with them as many people as they saw would be wanted for their defence; each captain putting another in charge of his caravel in place of himself, with orders that as soon as morning dawned they should come and look for them by the said island. And so the men in the boats set off, as had been ordered, and a little after midnight they arrived at the said island; on which they landed and made straight for the native settlement, but they only found there one blackamoor and his daughter, whom they carried off.
And the Moor by signs made them understand that, if they went to the mainland, they would find a settlement of Moors on the sea shore, showing them himself the way to the spot. And upon this, they decided to rest there the whole of the following day, for their deed could not be performed except by their arriving at night; and so they spent the day, partly in sleep, partly in eating and drinking; and especially did they delight themselves in the goodness of the water, for of this there was great abundance to be found there. And when night came, they started again, rowing briskly to the point which the Moor had indicated to them by signs before. And this was a marvellous thing; that as soon as one of the natives was captured, he took a delight in shewing to the enemy, not only his neighbours and friends, but even his wife and children. And so pursuing their way, some of them became doubtful of that project; thinking that they were going with too little advisement; in that they did not know how great was the number of our enemies, nor how they were equipped for defence. But the words of these men did not have much effect; because when the wills of men are eager for such deeds as these, they do not often wait to take counsel. And arriving at the mainland far on in the night, they put the Moor in front of them as their guide; but, through their difficulty in not being able to understand him, they delayed so much, that when morning dawned, they were still a great way distant from the village.
And the Moors rising up about dawn had sight of them where they were coming, and like men without heart and deprived of hope, they began to fly, every one where he perceived he could best take refuge, leaving behind goods, wives and children, as men who perceived that they had quite enough to do to save their own lives.
And our people, who were observing them, when they saw them flee thus, rejoiced somewhat at being safe from the peril which they had looked for before; yet on account of the loss which they saw they would suffer by the flight of them, they could not be very glad. But this thought had not time to be well considered in their minds, for though they were wearied, it was not perceptible in the course of their race; for just as briskly and with as much good will did they hasten on, as at other times they had done; rising from their beds and seeking to prove their cunning in the fields hard by those towns where they had been brought up. And it well appeared with what good will they did it in the capture of their booty; for though they had sighted it so far off, as we have said, and the enemy were rested and used to that business, yet they took twenty-five of them. But agile above all on that day was one Lawrence Diaz, a dweller in Setuval, who was a servant of the Prince, for he by himself alone took seven of those natives prisoners. And the toil was by no one much regarded in comparison of the pleasure with which they went along the shore to seek the caravels, for it was three days since they had left them.
[BR] Arguim.]
CHAPTER XXXIV.
How John Fernandez came to the caravels.
John Fernandez had now been seven months dwelling in that country,[[98]] and it seemeth clear, according to reason, that at the time Antam Gonçalvez left him he must have settled to return for him, or to beg the Infant to despatch some other, who could take him off in this way. And after John Fernandez perceived that the caravels had had time enough to return from Portugal, he came down many times to that shore to see if he could have sight of any of them. And I can well believe that this was his principal care.
And it happened that those who remained in the caravels, seeking to fulfil the orders of their chief captains, made sail to the Isle of Ergim (of which it appeared that they had no knowledge), and passed on and went cruising up and down for two days until they came to another land beyond. And a little more than an hour after they had cast anchor, they saw a man who stood on the land over against them. Quickly one caravel made ready to go and see who it could be; and making sail toward him it was not able to go as far in as it wished, because the wind was off the land. And John Fernandez, seeing the hindrance that the caravel received, resolved to go along the shore, either hoping that the ship's boats would be there, or for some other reason; and so went a little way, till he saw the boats that were coming in search of their ships. And when he shouted towards where they were coming, the others were very glad, thinking that he was some Moor who came to them of his own will to treat about the ransom of some one of these captives; but when they understood his speech, and he named himself for what he was, they were yet much more glad; so that they hastened towards him the quicker. And I consider, saith our author, what must have been the appearance of that noble squire, brought up as he had been upon the food you know, to wit, bread and wine and flesh and other things skilfully prepared, after living seven months in this fashion, where he could eat nothing except fish and the milk of camels—for I believe there are no better cattle in that part—and drinking brackish water, and not too much of that; and living in a burning hot and sandy land without any delights. O ye people who live in all the sweetness of Spanish valleys, who when you chance to miss any part of your accustomed maintenance in the houses of the lord with whom ye live, will let nothing else be heard for your complaints—look, if you will, upon the sufferings of this man, and you will find him worthy to be a great example for anyone who wisheth to do the will of his Lord by serving him. And we others, who perchance fast one day in many months by command of the Church, or for satisfaction of our penance, or in honour of some festival of the Church, if it be such that we must eat only bread and water, we give up all that day to sadness. And how many there are who dispense their own consciences, breaking their fasts to content their bellies. Let us see if there is one here who, for a single week, would endure a like toil of his own free will for Christ's sake. I will not say that the impulse of John Fernandez was not with some regard for his Lord, for I knew this squire myself, and he was a man of good conscience and a true Catholic Christian; and since the object of the principal mover[[BS]] was so righteous and so holy, as I have already said in other places, all the other matters set in motion by him must needs in some way have corresponded to his first intention.