And landing thus they sent on ahead to reconnoitre the land, but they had not followed very far, when they saw before them a few huts. And upon these they rushed without waiting for any agreement, and there they came upon some few Moors, of whom they captured eight.
And seeking to learn from them if there were thereabouts any other settlement, and to this end threatening some of them, they were not able to learn anything but that in all this land there was no other settlement. And in this all the eight were agreed, after each one had been taken aside in turn. And for this reason it was needful for them to return to their ships, with the intention of now returning to their homes, without spending any more trouble in the matter, since they understood that they could not gain any further profit by more toil. And in agreement with this decision were all the others who belonged to the Caravels, except only the Alcayde of Lagos, who said that he still wished to return to Tider in order to make ransom of a Mooress, and of the son of a lord of that place. And although he was counselled to the contrary, yet would he never abandon his design, howbeit afterwards he repented of it sorely. And arriving at the island, he began to make signs to the Moors, who had come down to the shore as soon as they saw the caravel sailing towards them.
And of them he had one Moor for his security while he surrendered the master of the caravel, and a Jew who was in his company. But when the Moors had them in their power, the Mooress, of whom the Alcayde sought to make the ransom, threw herself into the water, and like one practised in that kind of thing very quickly got to land and joined her relations and her friends. And on account of this the Moors considered that they ought not to give up the hostages without an advantage over what they at first had purposed; and finally they refused to surrender those whom they had until they[[BL]] should give them three Moors. Which matter, although it was a hard thing for the Alcayde to do, was yet condescended to by him, seeing the necessity of the case; howbeit he blamed himself in that he had not followed the first advice of his companions. And seeing how he could make no further profit in that ransom, he turned back to the Kingdom.
[BL] The Portuguese.
CHAPTER LXVIII.
How the caravel of Alvaro Gonçalvez d'Atayde and that of Picanço and the other of Tavilla sailed in company, and of the Canarians that they captured.
We have told in other chapters how the caravel of Tavilla and the other of Picanço parted company with the others when they went to Guinea, where it befell that they agreed together to return to Portugal. And on their return voyage they met with the caravel of Alvaro Gonçalvez d'Atayde, whose captain was one John de Castilha, and on asking him whither he was going, he said that he was voyaging to Guinea. "But," said the others, "what availeth your going at such a time as this, for we have just come from there, as you see, and winter is beginning, and therefore if you pursue your journey further you will imperil your life and gain little honour and less profit; but if you think good to follow our advice, return with us and we will go to the island of Palma, and see if we can make a capture of some of those Canarians there."
And although John de Castilha had doubts about so returning, because it did not appear to him a sure thing from the accounts he had heard of the inhabitants of that island, how that they were difficult to capture, yet compelled by the reasons the others gave him, he had to return with them. And so, going all in company, they arrived at the island of Gomera, where, wishful to go on shore, they espied many Canarians, of whom they took security before wholly leaving their boats. The Canarians granted them this without any reluctance, like men whose wills were more inclined to do them service than to put difficulties in their way. And immediately came there two chiefs of that island, who said how they were servants of the Infant Don Henry (and not without good reason, for they had previously been in the house of the King of Castile and the King of Portugal), and how in neither of them had they met with the favours they afterwards received from the Infant Don Henry; for while they were in his house they had from him a right excellent entertainment as long as they stayed there; and, in short[[BM]] he had clothed them very well, and sent them in his ships to their own land, on which account they were very ready to do him every service. "But," said they of the caravels, "we are also his men and servants, and by his command we left our country; wherefore if such is your mind, you have now the occasion of showing it right well, for we would go to the island of Palma and essay to take some captives, in the which your assistance would be very useful to us, if you would send with us some of these your subjects to aid and direct us, for we are unacquainted with the land, and have no knowledge of the ways of its inhabitants in their fighting." Now Bruco was the name of one of these chiefs, and the other's name was Piste, and they replied together that they were well pleased to toil in any matter that was for the service of the lord Infant Don Henry, and that they rendered many thanks to God for giving them the opportunity of showing what a good will they had for it; "and that you may see," said Piste, "the desire I have to serve him, I will accompany you and bring with me as many Canarians as you wish."
"It seemeth to me," saith the author, "that the gratitude of these men bringeth shame on many who had received greater and better things from this our Prince, and yet came not by a great way to so perfect a knowledge of it. Oh, what a dishonour for those who were brought up in his household, and whom he afterwards placed in dignities and lordships, but who, clean forgetful of this, deserted him when their service was of need; and the names and deeds of these we will relate in the history of the Kingdom when we come to speak of the siege of Tangier."
And so that captain offered himself with his person and men, of whom he straightway had embarked in the ships as many as the captains wished to receive, and then they set sail forthwith, directing their course to the other Island of Palma, where they arrived when it was almost morning. And although reason would not have allowed them to land at such an hour, nevertheless they agreed together to go on shore forthwith. "For," said they, "we have already been perceived, and if we wait at all, our booty will be labour lost, for the Canarians will put themselves in safety, while if we land forthwith we shall be able to capture some; for although they are fleet of foot, yet there will be men among us that will follow them; and for sure the owners of those flocks who are wandering there before our eyes, will hasten up and get them in, for it is their custom to take almost as much toil about them as on their own behalf." And although such a resolve was perilous, yet it met with the approval of all of them; and so in a very short space they were all set on shore, as well the Portuguese as the Canarians.[[BN]] And as they were pursuing their way at no great distance from the beach, they perceived that the Canarians[[BO]] were flying, and as they commenced to follow them, one of the company said to the others: "Wherefore undertake a vain toil in running after those men? for however much you labour, you will not be able to come up with them; but rather let us follow those ewes and rams which are going up that crag, for of a surety the most part of those who are with them are youths and women, and if we follow them well we are bound to capture some." And these words were scarcely finished when all our men began to run, leaving the other Canarians, whose track they had already commenced to follow up. But those shepherds entered with their flock into a valley so deep and so dangerous that it was easier to marvel at than to relate how any could make their passage through it.
But the Christians, both Portuguese and Canarians, followed them up with such zeal that just as the first began to enter into the valley, ours were already nigh unto them, and so all together they entered the valley, in such a way that the shepherds were obliged to take shelter among an expanse of rocky crags, the roughness of which was a marvellous thing; but much more marvellous was the ease with which the Canarians of that island made their way among those rocks, as though in sucking the milk from their mothers' breasts, they had commenced to walk in those places. And as the Psylli and Marmaridae,[[BP]] who live beyond the Libyan desert, know their sons to be sprung from their own bodies if straightway in their first boyhood they handle without fear the great poisons of that desert as they are offered to them by their fathers; so the Canarians of this island consider that their sons, if they are not born with this agility, have been generated by some wicked adultery.