Those Who Went To Tututepec, Near
The South Sea, Brought Back Samples Of Gold, And Praised The Pleasantness
Of The
Country; reporting that there were many good harbours on the coast,
and they presented to Cortes a beautiful cloth of
Cotton, on which the
coast, with all its harbours and creeks, was distinctly represented. But
at this time, by the coming of Pamphilus de Narvaez, the whole kingdom of
Mexico was thrown into confusion.
On the 10th August 1519, Fernando de Magellanes went from Seville with
five ships, on a voyage for the islands of, Malacca[34]. Going along the
coast of Brazil, he came to the Rio Plata, which had been previously
discovered by the Spaniards. Thence prosecuting his voyage of discovery,
he came to Port St Julians, in lat. 49 deg. S. where he lost one of his ships.
With the remaining four he came to the straits named after himself, in
52 deg. 80' S. and wintered in that place, where he and his people endured
much distress from snow and ice, and extreme cold. They found the people
of the country of extraordinary stature and great strength, insomuch that
they took men by the legs, and rent them asunder as easily as one of us
could tear a hen in two. These people, named _Pataganes_, but called
_Morcas_ by the Brazilians, live on fruits and by the produce of the
chase. In the beginning of September of the following year, 1520, the
weather became somewhat temperate, and leaving Port St Julian, Magellanes
went to the straits which now bear his name; whence one of the ships
returned to Spain, of which Stephen de Porto, a Portuguese, was captain
and pilot. The other three passed through into a vast sea called the
_Pacific_; where they found no inhabited land till they arrived in lat.
13 deg. N. when they came to certain islands named _Los Jardines_. They
sailed thence to the archipelago of St Lazarus, where, in an island named
_Matan_, Magellanes was slain and his ship burnt. The remaining two ships
went to Borneo, and thence to the Moluccas, leaving many others
discovered, which I do not mention, because I have not seen any exact
account of this voyage[35].
About this time Pope Leo X. sent Paulus Centurio on an embassy to the
great duke of Muscovy, requiring him to send an army along the coast of
Tartary into India; and the duke was almost persuaded to have made the
attempt, if certain inconveniencies had not hindered[36].
In February 1520, Diego Lopez de Sequeira, governor of India, sailed by
the strait of Mecca[37], carrying with him the ambassador of Prester John
and Roderigo de Lima, who was sent ambassador to that prince. They came
to the island of Macua or Massoua, on the African shore of the Red Sea,
in lat. 17 deg. N. where the ambassadors and their Portuguese attendants were
set on shore. Peter de Covillan had been sent there formerly by John II.
of Portugal; but the best account of that country was furnished by
Francis Alvarez.
In this year 1520, the licentiate Lucas Vasques de Aillon, and others of
St Domingo, sent two ships to procure slaves at the Lucayos or Bahama
islands; but finding none there, they passed on along the continent,
beyond Florida, to certain countries called Chicora and Gualdape, and to
the river Jordan and Cape St Helena, in lat. 32 deg. N.[38]. The Spaniards
landed here, and were hospitably received by the natives, who furnished
them with every thing they needed: but, having inveigled many of the
unsuspecting natives on board their ships, they carried them away for
slaves. In their way back to St Domingo, one of these vessels was lost,
and the other was in great danger. On learning the news of this discovery,
the licentiate Aillon made application to the emperor for the government
of that country, where he expected to find much wealth, and received the
appointment.
About this time, learning the success of Cortes in Mexico, and that he
had applied to the emperor for the commission of governor, Diego
Velasques, governor of Cuba, who considered that it ought to belong to
him, fitted out an armament of eighteen ships, under the command of
Pamphilus de Narvaez, already mentioned, with a thousand men and eighty
horses, whom he sent to Mexico in order to supersede Cortes. Landing in
the neighbourhood of Vera Cruz, he sent an order to the garrison to
receive him as governor; but they made his messenger prisoner, and sent
him to Cortes, then at Mexico. On this Cortes wrote to Narvaez, desiring
him not to raise any disturbance in the country, and offering to submit
to his authority if he held a commission from the emperor. But Narvaez
corrupted the people of the country; upon which Cortes went from Mexico,
and took Narvaez prisoner in the town of Zempoallan, putting out one of
his eyes. After this the soldiers of Narvaez submitted to Cortes; who
detached two hundred soldiers to the river of Garay or Panuco, and a
similar detachment under John Vasquez de Leon to Cosualco. He sent
likewise a messenger to Mexico with an account of his victory; but the
natives, having risen in rebellion, killed his messenger.
Cortes now set forwards on his return to Mexico, with one thousand foot
soldiers and two thousand horsemen, and found Peter de Alvarado and the
garrison he had left in Mexico in charge of Mutecuma, in safety. But the
Mexicans continued their insurrection, and on one occasion Mutecuma was
killed by a stone thrown by one of his own subjects. They then elected
another king, and the Spaniards were forced to evacuate the city with
great difficulty and danger. Driven out of Mexico, and having only 504
footmen and 40 horse remaining, Cortes retired with much difficulty to
Tlaxcallan, where he was well received. He here mustered a force of 900
Spanish infantry and 80 cavalry, and gathered 200,000 Indians among the
friends and allies whom he had secured, enemies of the Mexicans, and
marched back to Mexico, which he took in August 1521[39].
In October 1521, Cortes sent 200 foot and 35 horse, with a number of his
Indian allies, under the command of Gonsalo de Sandoval, against
Tochtepec and Coazacoalco, which had rebelled, and which Sandoval reduced
to obedience.
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