Indians of this prouince pay all their tribute in mantles of cotton wooll and cacao. There is no port in all this prouince for a ship of 100 tun to ride in, but onely in the riuer of Tabasco, by which riuer this city of Merida standeth. The chiefest merchandize which they lade there in small frigats, is a certeine wood called campeche, (wherewith they vse to die) as also hides and annile. By this there lieth the prouince of Iucatan, nere the Honduras by the North sea coast, where there is also another bishop, and a towne likewise named Iucatan, where there dwell a few Spanyards. They haue no force at all in all this coast to defend themselues withall, saue only that the land is low, and there is no port to receiue any shipping, vnlesse they be frigats, which cary from thence to the port of S. Iohn de Vllua, waxe, cacao, hony, and also mantles of cotton wool, whereof they make there great store, and of which kind of merchandize there is great trade thence to Mexico: of the same also they pay their tribute to the king.
The greatnesse of the king of Spaines tribute out of the West Indies. The king hath tribute brought him yerely out of the Indies into Spaine betweene nine and ten millions of gold and siluer: for he receiueth of euery Indian which is subiect vnto him (excepting those which do belong to the Incommenderos, which are the children of those Spanyards, who first conquered the land, to whom the king gaue and granted the gouernment of the cities and townes subdued for three liues) twelue reals of plate, and a hannege of maiz, which is a wheat of the countrey, (fiue of them making a quarter of English measure) and of euery widow woman he hath sixe reals, and halfe a hannege of maiz. And so if any Indian haue twenty children in his house, he payeth for euery one of them, being aboue fifteene yeres old, after that rate. This Wheat being duely brought to the gouernour of euery prouince and city, is sold in Mexico by the kings gouernours there every yeere; so that the money receiued for it, is put into the kings Treasurie there, and is so yeerely caried from thence into Spaine. The quinta. Of the Spanyards which are owners of the mines of gold and siluer, he receiueth the fift part of it, which he calleth his quintas, which being taken out of the heape, there is his armes set on it; for otherwise it may not be brought out of the land into Spaine, vnder paine of death. The marke of siluer, which is eight ounces, when it commeth out of the mines, not hauing the kings seale vpon it,
is woorth three and forty reals of plate, and so it is current: and when they will bring it for Spaine, they cary it to the kings Treasure house, where his seale is set vpon it; and so it is raised in value thereby to threescore and foure reals of plate: and so the king hath for his custome of euery marke of plate one and twenty reals.
From the yere of 1570, which was the yeere that the Popes buls came into the Indies, as is afore mentioned, he hath receiued both of the Indians which are tributaries vnto him, and also of all others belonging to the Incommenderos, of euery one being aboue twelue yeeres of age, foure reals of euery bull. Also they cary other pardons with them into the Indies, for such as be dead, although an hundred yeres before the Spanyards came into the countrey: which pardons the friers in their preachings perswaded the poore Indians to take, telling them that with giuing foure reals of plate for a Masse, they would deliuer their soules out of purgatory. Of the Christians likewise dwelling there he hath foureteene reals for euery bull: and there be certeine buls brought thither for the Christians besides the former, which serue for pardoning all such faults wherein they haue trespassed either against the king, by keeping backe his customes, or one against another by any other injury; for euery hundred crownes whereof a mans conscience doth accuse him that he hath deceiued the king or any other, he must giue ten for a bull, and so after that rate for euery hundred which he hath any way stollen, and so is pardoned the fault. The reuenue of the kings buls and pardons came yerely to three millions. The reuenue of his buls after this maner yeeldeth vnto his treasury yeerely aboue three millions of gold, as I haue bene credibly informed, although of late both the Spanyards and Indians do refuse to take the buls; for that they perceiue he doth make a yeerely custome of it: onely ech Indian taketh one pardon for all his householde, (whereas in former time euery Indian vsed to take one for euery person in his house) and teareth the same into small pieces, and giueth to euery one of his householde a little piece, saying thus, they need now no more, seeing in that which they bought the yeere before they had aboue ten thousand yeres pardon. These pieces they sticke vp in the wall of the houses where they lie. Rebellions in Noua Hispania by two great exactions. Both the Christians and Indians are weary with these infinite taxes and customes, which of late he hath imposed vpon them, more than in the yeeres
before: so as the people of both sorts did rebell twise in the time that I was among them, and would have set vp another king of themselues: for which cause the king hath commanded vpon paine of death, that they should not plant either oile or wine there, but should alwayes stand in need of them to be brought out of Spaine, although there would more grow there in foure yeeres then there groweth in Spaine in twenty, it is so fertile a countrey.
The reasons which mooue the kings of Spaine to forbid foren traffike in the West Indies. And the king to keepe the countrey alwayes in subiection, and to his owne vse, hath streightly prouided by lawe, vpon paine of death, and losse of goods, that none of these countreys should traffique with any other nation, although the people themselues doe much now desire to trade with any other then with them, and would vndoubtedly doe, if they feared not the perill ensuing thereupon.
About Mexico, and other places in Noua Hispania, there groweth a certaine plant called magueis, which yeeldeth wine, vineger, hony, and blacke sugar, and of the leaues of it dried they make hempe, ropes, shooes which they vse, and tiles for their houses: and at the ende of euery leafe there groweth a sharpe point like an awle, wherewith they vse to bore or pearce thorow any thing.
Thus to make an end, I have heere set downe the summe of all the chiefest things that I haue obserued and noted in my seventeene yeres trauell in those parts.
A relation of the commodities of Noua Hispania, and the maners of the inhabitants, written by Henry Hawkes merchant, which liued fiue yeeres in the sayd countrey, and drew the same at the request of M. Richard Hakluyt Esquire of Eton in the county of Hereford, 1572.
Saint Iohn de Vilua is an Island not high aboue the water, where as now the Spanyards vpon M. Iohn Hawkins being there, are in making a strong fort. In this place all the ships that come out of Spaine with goods for these parts, do vnlade: for they haue none other port so good as this is. The comming into this place hath three chanels, and the best of all is the Northermost, which goeth by the maine land: and on euery side of the chanels there are many small rocks, as big as a small