Chap. 10.
They giue vnto the Indians many trifles which stand vpon the shore to see them, and seeke to parley with them by their interpreter, which was a Chichimeco, who could not vnderstand their language. They go to take fresh water. Francis Preciado spendeth the time with them with many signes, and trucking and being afeard of their great multitude, retireth himselfe wisely with his companions, returning with safety to the ships.
When the Captaine and we beheld this we iudged these Indians to be peaceable people; whereupon the Captaine tooke the boat with 4 or 5 mariners carrying with him certain beades to truck, and went to speake with them. In the meane while he commanded the Indian interpreter our Chichimeco, to be called out of the Admirall that he should parley with them. And the Captaine came vnto the boy, and laid certaine things vpon it for exchange, and made signes vnto the Sauages to come and take them; and an Indian made signes vnto our men with his hands, his armes, and head, that they vnderstood them not, but signified that they should go aside. Whereupon the Captaine departed a smal distance from that place with his boat. And they made signes againe that he should get him further; whereupon we departing a great way off, the saide Indians leapt into the water, came vnto the boy, and tooke those beades, and returned backe againe to land, and then came vnto the other three, and all of them viewing our things, they gaue a bowe and certaine arrowes to an Indian, and sent him away, running with all haste on the shore, and made signes vnto vs that they had sent word vnto their lord what things we had giuen them, and that he would come thither. Within a while after the said Indian returned, running as he did before, and beganne to make signes vnto vs, that his Lord was comming. And while we stayed here, we saw on the shore ten or twelue Indians assemble themselues, which came vnto the other Indians, and by and by we saw another company of 12 or 15 more appeare, who assembled themselues all together. And againe they began to make signes vnto vs, to come
foorthwith to our boates, and shewed vs many Oysters of pearles on the top of certaine canes, making signes that they would giue them vs. When we beheld this, the Captaine commanded vs to make readie our boate, and went aboord it with the said mariners, and rowed to a certaine stone in forme of a rocke, which lay in the sea neere vnto the shore. And hither came first 2 or 3 Indians, and layd downe one of those Oysters, and a garland made of Parats feathers, or sparrowes feathers painted red; they layd downe also certaine plumes of white feathers, and others of blew colour. In the mean while we sawe continually Indians assemble to the shore by tenne and tenne, and so by little and little they came in squadrons; anyone of them assoone as hee sawe the boat beganne to leape forward and backeward with so great nimblenesse, that doubtlesse he seemed to all of vs a man of great agilitie, and we tooke no small pleasure while we beheld him fetching those gambols: but the rest of the Indians which stood at the mouth of the fresh water ranne toward him, and cryed vnto him, forbidding him to vse those gestures, because we were come thither in peaceable sort, and by this meanes he came with the rest to the watering place, where by little and little in this manner there assembled aboue a hundred of them all in order, with certaine staues with cordes to fling them, and with their bowes and arrowes, and they were all painted. In the meane while our Chichimeco interpreter borne in the Ile of California, was come vnto vs, and the Captaine againe commanded a mariner to strippe himselfe, and to swimme and laye vpon the said rocke certaine belles, and more beades, and when he had layd them there, the Indians made signes that he should goe away; and so they came thither and tooke them, and our men drew neere with their boat. The Captaine commanded the Indian our Chichimeco to speake vnto them, but they could not vnderstand him, so that we assuredly beleeue, that they vnderstand not the language of the Ile of California. This day being Tuesday vntil night the Indians stayed at this watering place, taking some of our beades, and giuing vnto vs their feathers and other things, and when it was very late they departed. The morrow following being Wednesday very early the Captaine commanded that our buttes should be made ready, that before breake of day, and before the Indians should take the hill, which stood ouer the watering place, we might be landed in good order: which was put in execution: for we went on shore with
as many as could goe, sauing those that had charge to take in the water, and such as were to stay on ship-boord, which in all were about fourteene or fifteene persons, in as good order as we could deuise: for we were foure crossebowes, two harquebuziers, and eight or nine targets, and the most part of vs carried very good slings, and eueryone eighteene riuer stones, which weapon the Captaine inuented, because the Indians at the first had handled vs very shrewdly with the multitude of stones which they flang at vs: we had nothing to defende vs sauing our targets, and to seeke to winne the fortes from whence they indamaged vs; he therefore thought with these slings, that we might offend them, and we, likewise thought well of his opinion, for making tryall of them, we threw very well with them, and much farther than we thought we could haue done: for the slings being made of hempe, we flung very farre with them. Nowe being come to the watering place the sayd Wednesday by breake of day we tooke the fort of the fountaine, which were certaine cragges or rockes hanging ouer the same, betweene which there was an opening or deepe valley through which this water runneth, which is no great quantitie, but a little brooke not past a fadome broad. So standing all in order, other foure or fiue Indians came thither, who as soone as they sawe vs to be come on shore, and to haue gotten the toppe of the watering place, they retired vnto a small hill on the other side, for the valley was betweene them and vs: neither stayed they long before they beganne to assemble themselues as they had done the day before by 10 and 10, and 15 and 15, ranging themselues on this high hill, where they made signes vnto vs. And Francis Preciado craued license of the Generall to parley with these Indians, and to giue them some trifles; wherewith he was contented, charging him not to come too neere them, nor to goe into any place where they might hurt him. Whereupon Francis went vnto a plaine place, vnder the hill where the Indians stood, and to put them out of feare he layd downe his sword and target, hauing onely a dagger hanging downe at his girdle, and in a skarfe which he carried at his necke, certaine beades to exchange with them, combs, fishinghooks and comfits. And be began to goe vp the hill, and to shew them diuerse of his merchandise. The Indians as soone as he had layd those things on the ground, and gone somewhat aside, came downe from the hill and tooke them, and carried them vp, for it seemed that their Lord was among them, to whom they carried
those trifles. Truck and traffique with the Indians for mother of pearle, and other things. Then they came downe againe, and layd to giue vnto him in the said place, an oyster of pearles, and two feathers like haukes feathers, making signes to Preciado that he should come and take them; which he did, and againe layde there a string of belles, and a great fishhooke, and certaine beades; and they taking the same, layd there againe another oyster of pearle, and certaine feathers: and he layd downe other beads, two fishhookes, and more comfits, and the Indians came to take them vp, and approched much neerer vnto him, then at other times, and so neere that a man might haue touched them with a pike, and then they began to talke together: and 7 or 8 more came downe, vnto whom Francis Preciado made signes, that they should come downe no lower, and they incontinently layd their bowes and arrowes on the ground, and hauing layd them downe came somewhat lower, and there with signes, together with them which came first, they began to parle with him, and required mariners breeches and apparel of him, and aboue all things a red hat pleased them highly, which the saide Francis ware on his head, and they prayed him to reach it vnto them, or to lay it in the place; and after this certaine of them made signes vnto him to knowe whether he would haue a harlot, signifying with their fingers those villanies and dishonest actions, and among the rest they set before him an Indian of great stature dyed wholly with black, with certaine shels of the mother of pearle at his necke, and on his head, and speaking by signes to Francis Preciado touching the foresaid act of fornication, thrusting their finger through a hole, they said vnto him, that if hee would haue a woman, they would bring him one; and he answered, that he liked well of it, and that therefore they should bring him one. In the meane space on the other side where the Generall stood with his company, another squadron of Indians shewed themselues, whereupon the Generall and his company made a stirre, and put themselues in battell array: whereupon Francis Preciado was inforced to come downe from them, to ioyne with the General and his company: and here the Indians which came last began to make signes that we should lay downe something to truck, and that they would giue us some of their shels of mother of pearle, which they brought vpon certaine small stickes, and herewithall they came very neere vnto vs, wherewith we were not well content. And Francis Preciado said vnto the Captaine, that if it pleased him,
hee would cause all the Indians to come together and to stay vpon that high hill; and he answered, that it was best to draw them all together, for by this time our men had taken in all their water, and stayed for the boat: whereupon Francis taking a crowne of beades went toward the valley, through which the water ran toward the Indians, and made signes vnto them to call the rest, and to come all together, because he would goe to the olde place, to lay things on the ground for exchange, as at the first; and they answered that he should doe so, and that they had called the others, and that they would doe, as he would haue them, and so they did, for they caused them to come vnto them, which they did, and Francis likewise went alone towards them, in which meane space the Generall commanded his people to get into the boat. Francis comming vnto the place beganne to lay downe his merchandise of traffique, and afterwards made signes vnto them to stay there, because he would goe to the ships to bring them other things, and so he returned to the place where the Captaine was, and found them all got into the boates, sauing the Generall and three or foure others, and the Generall made as though he had giuen other trifles to Preciado to carry vnto the Indians, and when he was gone a little from him, he called him back againe, and all this while the Indians stood still, and being come vnto him, wee went faire and softly to our boates, and got vnto them at our ease, without any thronging, and thence we came aboord our ship.
The Indians seeing vs thus gone aboord came downe to the strand where the brooke of water was, and called vnto vs to come foorth with our boates, and to come on shore, and to bring our beades, and that they would giue vs of their mother of pearles: but we being now set at dinner made no account of them: whereupon they beganne to shoot arrowes at the ship, and although they fell neere vs, yet they did not reach vs. In the meane season certaine mariners went out in the boat, to wey the anker, whereupon the Indians seeing them comming towards them, and bringing them nothing, they beganne in scorne to shew them their buttockes, making signes that they should kisse their bums: and these seemed to be those that came last. The Generall seeing this, commanded a musket to be once or twise shot off, and that they should take their iust ayme. They seeing these shot to be made readie, some of them rose and went to shoot their arrowes at our mariners, which were
gone to weigh the ankers, then the Generall commanded the great ordinance speedily to be shot off, whereupon three or foure bullets were discharged, and we perceiued that we had slaine one of them, for we assuredly saw him lye dead vpon the shore: and I thinke some of the rest were wounded. They hearing this noyse, and seeing him dead ranne away as fast as euer they could, some along the shore, and some through the vallies, dragging the dead Indian with them, after which time none of them appeared, saue ten or twelue, which peeped vp with their heads among those rocks; whereupon another piece of ordinance was discharged aloft against the place where they were, after which time we neuer saw any more of them.
Chap. 11.