We Continued There Seven Days On Account
Of Rain And Bad Weather, And Canoes Came Constantly To The Ships From All
The Country Round To Trade With Provisions And Bottoms Of Fine Spun Cotton,
Which They Gave In Exchange For Points And Pins And Other Trifles.
On Wednesday the ninth of November we sailed from Porto Bello eight
leagues to the eastwards, but were driven
Back four leagues next day by
stress of weather, and put in among some islands near the continent where
the town of Nombre de Dios now stands; and because all these small islands
were full of grain, the admiral called this place Puerto de Bastimentos,
or Port of Provisions. While here one of our boats pursued a canoe, and
the Indians imagining our men would do them some harm, and perceiving the
boat within less than a stones throw of them, they leapt into the sea to
swim away, which they all effected; for though the boat rowed hard it
could not overtake any of them, or if it did come up with one he would
dive like a duck and come up again a bow-shot or two distant. This chase
lasted above half a league, and it was very pleasant to see the boat
labour in vain and come back empty handed.
We continued here till the 23d of November, refitting the ships and
mending our casks, and sailed that day to a place called Guiga, there
being another of the same name between Veragua and Cerago. The boats went
ashore at this place, where they found above 300 persons ready to trade in
provisions and some small gold ornaments which they wore at their ears and
noses. On Saturday the 24th of November we put into a small port which was
called Retrete, or the Retired Place, because it could not contain above
five or six ships together; the mouth of it was not above 15 or 20 paces
over, and on both sides rocks appeared above water as sharp as diamonds.
The channel between was so deep that no bottom could be found, though if
the ships inclined only a little way to either side the men could leap on
shore. This sharpness of the rocks saved the ships in this narrow passage,
and the danger we were now in was owing to the covetousness of the people
who went in the boats to view it, as they were desirous of trafficking
with the Indians, and believed that the ships might be in safety close to
the shore. In this place we were detained nine days by bad weather. At
first the Indians came very familiarly to trade in such articles as they
had to dispose of; but our seamen used to steal privately on shore and
commit a thousand insolencies like covetous dissolute fellows, insomuch
that they provoked the Indians to break the peace, and several skirmishes
happened between them and our people. The Indians at length took courage
to advance to our ships which lay with their sides close to the shore,
intending to do us some harm; but their designs turned out to their own
detriment, although the admiral always endeavoured to gain them by
patience and civility.
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