He Was Now Eighteen Leagues From Isabella, And Discovered Several Gold Mines, Besides One Of Copper, One Of Azure, And Another Of Amber; These Two Last Being Only In Small Quantities.

To protect his workmen at the mines, and to keep the province under subjection, the admiral made choice of a convenient situation for a redoubt or small fortress, on a hill which was almost encompassed by a river called Zanique.

The ramparts of this fort were constructed of earth and timber, and these were defended by a trench at the gorge where not inclosed by the river. He named this Fort St Thomas, because of the incredulity of the Spaniards, who would not believe that the country produced gold till they saw and touched it. In digging the foundations of this fort, several nests of straw were found, in each of which three or four round stones were found, as large as oranges, instead of eggs.

Having established all things to his mind, the admiral left Don Peter Margarite, a gentleman of Catalonia, as governor of the fort, with a garrison of fifty-six men, and returned himself to Isabella, where he arrived on the 29th of March. He here found matters much worse than at his departure, only seventeen days before. Many of the colonists were dead, and great numbers sick, while those who were still in health were quite disheartened at the prospect of following the fate of their companions. The provisions which had been brought from Spain were growing extremely scarce, owing to a great quantity of them being spoiled through the negligence of the sea captains, while such as had been landed in good condition would not keep long, on account of the dampness and heat of the climate. All were therefore on short allowance, and the flour they had still in store being near spent, it became necessary to construct a mill for grinding corn: But, as all the labouring people were sick, the better sort were forced to work, which was extremely grievous to them, especially as they were in want of food. In this emergency the admiral was under the necessity to use compulsion for carrying on the public works, that the people might not perish. This rendered him odious to the leading Spaniards, and gave occasion to Friar Boyle to charge him with cruelty; though it has been alleged that the true cause of his aversion to the admiral proceeded from being refused a larger allowance for himself and his servants than was given to others. Provisions became at length so scarce, that even the sick were often reduced to one egg each, and a pot of boiled Spanish pease among five. The want of proper medicines added greatly to the distress; for though some had been brought along with the expedition, they did not agree with all constitutions; and, what was still worse, they had no medical person to attend upon the sick. Many well-born men, who had never been accustomed to such hardships, being sick and starving, and without all hope of relief, sunk under their situation, and died almost of despair. Afterwards, when the town of Isabella was abandoned, it was currently reported that dreadful noises were heard in the place, so that for a long while no one durst venture to go that way.

To add to his affliction, the admiral received intelligence from Fort St Thomas, that all the Indians had abandoned their towns, and that Caunabo, the cacique of one of the provinces, was making preparations to reduce the fort. The admiral sent immediately a reinforcement of seventy of the healthiest of his men to the fort, escorting some beasts of burden, laden with arms and provisions. He likewise ordered Alonso de Ojedo to take the field with as many men as were able to march, leaving only the sick and the mechanics behind; desiring him to march about the country, particularly the Royal Plain, where there were many caciques and an innumerable multitude of Indians; intending to intimidate the natives by a display of the Spanish force, and to accustom the Spaniards to use the provisions of the country, as their own were nearly spent. Ojeda left Isabella with above 400 men on the 9th of April; and as soon as he had passed Golden River in the Royal Plain, he seized the cacique of one of the towns, with his brother and nephew, whom he sent prisoners to Isabella, and caused the ears of an Indian to be cut off in the market place. The reason of this severity was, because when three Spaniards were going from Fort St Thomas to Isabella, the cacique gave them five Indians to carry their baggage across the river, who left the Spaniards and carried the baggage back to the town, for which the cacique was so far from punishing them, that he detained the baggage. The cacique of another town, on seeing these chiefs carried away prisoners, went along with them to Isabella, believing he might be able to procure their pardon from the admiral, as he had always been friendly to the Spaniards. "As soon as they arrived, the admiral ordered their heads to be cut off in the market-place, a crier proclaiming the offences for which they were to suffer this condign punishment; but for the sake of the friendly cacique he forgave them[1]." About this time a horseman came to Isabella from the fort, who reported that the inhabitants of the town belonging to the cacique who was their prisoner had beset five Spaniards with intention to put them to death; but that he and his horse had rescued them from above 400 of the natives, who all fled before him out of fear for his horse, and that he had wounded several of them with his lance.

Having pacified the threatened commotions to all appearance for the present, the admiral determined to prosecute his maritime discoveries as he had been directed by their Catholic majesties, and because his disposition was averse from idleness, and much inclined to explore the country which he had discovered.

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