I should also have mentioned that the country of the Machkasis is so fertile that I have never seen the like of it before. For if an Indian goes forth into the forest, and makes a hole with an hatchet in the first tree he comes across, five or six measures of honey flow out of it, as pure as our mead. The bees that make this honey are very small and do not sting.[256] Their honey may be eaten with bread, or in any other manner. Good wine is also prepared from it, like the mead here in Germany, and even better.
[256] This description is greatly exaggerated. The bees make their hives (called in Guaraní camoati) on the branches of the trees, and it is from the hive, of course, not from the tree, that the honey is taken.
Now, when we came to the said Karchkockios, these Indians had all fled away with wives and children, and were afraid of us, but it would have been better for them to have remained in their villages; for our commander soon sent other Indians after them, and bade them return, saying that they ought not to fear, that no harm would be done to them; they would not, however, take heed of our request, but invited us to leave their village, threatening in case of our refusal to drive us out of it by force.
Having heard this, we soon made our preparations and went out against them. However, some of us were of opinion to send a message to our commander and advise him not to march against them, because this might bring about a great want in the land; in case we had to move from Peru to Riodellaplata, for then we would have no provisions. But our commander and the whole community would not accept that proposal, but preferred the above-mentioned advice, and went out against the said Karchkockios. And when we arrived at the distance of half-a-mile from them, we found that they had pitched their camp between two hills covered with forest; so that, if we conquered them, they might the more easily escape us. But it did not befall them well, for those we reached had to die at our hands or to become our slaves. We enslaved in this skirmish over one thousand, without reckoning those men, women, and children that were killed.
Afterwards we remained two months in this village, which was as great as five or six others joined together. We then went on further, to the place where we left the two aforesaid mentioned ships, and we were one year and a half on the journey, always engaged in one war after another, and took prisoners more than twelve thousand persons, all of whom became our slaves. I had for my share about fifty men, women, and children.
And when we came to the ships, the people that had been left on these bergentines informed us how, during our absence, a commander, Diego Abriego of Sievilla,[257] in Spain, on the one side, and a commander, J. Francisco Manchossa,[258] who had been left in charge of the two ships by our chief commander, Martin Domingo Eijolla,[259] during his absence on the other side, had begun a great quarrel. They told us that Diego de Abriego claimed to rule over them, while Johann Franciscus Manchossa, in his capacity as appointed commander and substitute of Martin Domingo Eijolla, would not consent to let him do this; and so the beggars-dance began between them, until at last Diego de Abriego[260] won the victory, and even took off the head of Johann Francisco Manchossa. From that moment he made much noise in the country, and proposed to march against us. First, he fortified himself in the town, and when we came along with our commander, Martin Domingo Eijolla, before the said town, he refused to let our commander in, or to surrender the town, or even still less to recognise him as his master.
[257] Diego de Abrego of Seville.
[258] Don Francisco de Mendoza.
[259] Domingo Martinez de Irala.
[260] This name is written Abreu and Abrego in different chronicles and documents. I believe the right name is Diego de Abrego.