[210] Tabaré.
We came to a river called Sthuesia,[211] which is as wide as the river Danube in our land, half the height of a man deep, and in some places even deeper, and it becomes at times very great and causes much harm in the country, and by reason of such inundation it is impossible to travel through the country.
[211] This may be the river Xejuy, or the Ipané, affluents of the river Paraguai.
As we had to cross this river, our enemies being on the other side with their camp, they resisted us and did us a great deal of harm in the crossing, so that I even believe that none of us had come out of it with his life but for the grace of God which was beforehand on our side and but for the guns that we had.
So God Almighty gave us His divine grace that we crossed the water by His divine benediction, and landed on the other side. Now, when the enemies saw that we had passed, they fled at once towards their town, which was half a mile from the river, but we, seeing it, pursued them with all our forces and came to the town as quickly as they themselves and besieged it, so that none should enter or come out of it; we also armed ourselves forthwith with our guns and pikes, and by the grace of God Almighty we had only to stay from the morning till night to overpower them, and become masters over them. We took the place, and slaughtered much people.
However, before we attacked them, our commander ordered us not to kill the women and children, but to take them prisoners; and we dutifully obeyed his commands. But all the men we could get hold of had to die; yet many escaped by flight, and our friends, the Jeperi,[212] took nearly one thousand heads from our enemies, the Carios.
[212] Yapirús. This word is sometimes rendered in the original “Jeperus”.
After all this had happened, those Carios who had escaped came with their chief, Thaberus,[213] and several other chiefs to our commander, and entreated him for mercy that their wives and children might be restored them, and then they would become friends again with us, and serve us faithfully.
[213] Tabaré.
Thereupon our commander promised them to be merciful, and took them into favour, and ever afterwards they continued our good friends so long as I remained in the country. This war with the Carios lasted for one year and a half, i.e., that we never had peace with one another, and that we were never sure of them; and this happened in the year 1546.