In This Journey, The
Spaniards Endured Many Hardships, But The Indians Fled Every Where Before
Them, And One Morning, They Found Thirty Of Their Horses Had Died During
The Night.
From _Cicuic_ they went to _Quivira_, a distance of 200 leagues
in their estimation, the whole way being in a level country; and they
marked their route by means of small hillocks of cow dung, that they might
be the better able to find their way back.
At one time they had a storm of
hail, the hailstones being as large as oranges. At length they reached
Quivira, where they found the King _Tatarax_, whose only riches consisted
in a copper ornament, which he wore suspended from his neck. They saw
neither cross, nor image of the virgin, nor any indication whatever of the
Christian religion. This country, according to their report, was very
thinly inhabited, more especially in its champaign or level parts, in
which the whole people wandered about with their cattle, of which they
have great abundance, living much in the same manner with the Arabs in
Barbary, removing from place to place according to the seasons, in search
of pastures for their cattle. The cattle belonging to these Indians are
almost as large as horses, having large horns, and bear fleeces of wool
like sheep, on which account the Spaniards gave them that name. They have
abundance of another kind of oxen or cattle, very monstrous in their form
having hunches on their backs like camels, with long beards, and long
manes like horses. The Indians live by eating these oxen, and by drinking
their blood, and clothe themselves in their skins. Most of their food is
raw, or at least slightly roasted, as they have no pots in which to boil
their food. They cut their meat with certain knives made of flint. Their
fruits are damsons, hazel-nuts, melons, grapes, pines, and mulberries.
They have dogs of such vast strength, that one of them will hold a bull,
be he never so wild. When the Indians remove from place to place, these
dogs carry their wives, children, and household stuff on their backs; and
are so strong as to carry fifty pounds at once[98]. I omit many other
circumstances of this expedition, because the plan I have prescribed
requires brevity[99].
In the year 1542, when Diego de Frietas was in the port of Dodra, in the
kingdom of Siam, three Portuguese of his crew deserted, and went in a junk
towards China. The names of these men were, Antonio de Mota, Francis
Zeimoro, and Antonio Pexoto; who directed their course for the city of
Liampa, in lat. 30 deg. N. or upwards[100]. Having encountered a great storm,
they were driven to a distance from land distance from land, and came in
sight of an island far to the east, in lat. 32 deg. N. which they called Japan,
and which seems to be the isle of Zipangri, mentioned by Marco Polo the
Venetian, which in exceedingly rich in gold and silver, and other valuable
commodities.
In the same year, 1542, Don Antonio de Mendoca, the viceroy of New Spain,
sent certain sea captains and pilots to explore the Coast of Cape del
Engannon, where a fleet, sent by Cortes, had been before. They sailed as
far as the latitude 40 deg. N. when they came in sight of a range of mountains
covered in snow, which they name _Sierras Nevadas_, or the snowy mountains
in lat. 40 deg.N. They here met with certain merchant ships, which carried on
their stems the images of a kind of birds called _Aleutarsi_, and had
their yards gilded, and their bows laid over with silver. These seemed to
belong to the islands of Japan or to China, as the people said that their
country was within thirty days sail[101]. In the same year, the viceroy
Mendoca sent a fleet of six ships, with 400 Spanish soldiers, and as many
Mexicans, under the command of his brother-in-law, Rui Lopez de Villa
Lobos, a person in high estimation, to the Mindanao islands. They sailed
on the eve of All Saints, from the harbour of Natividad, in lat. 20 deg.N. and
shaping their course towards the west, they came in sight of the island of
St Thomas, which had been before discovered by Hernando de Girijalva; and
beyond that, in 17 deg.N, they got sight of another island, which they named
_La Nebulata_ or the Cloudy Island; and from thence, they came to another
island, which they named _Roca Partalia_, or the cloven rock. On the 3rd.
of December, they discovered certain shoals, having only six or seven
fathoms water. On the fifteenth of the same month, they had sight of the
islands which were discovered by Diego de Roca, Gomez de Sequieira, and
Alvaro de Saavedra, called _Los Reyes_ or islands of the kings, because
discovered on Twelfth day. And beyond these, they found a cluster of
islands, in 10 deg. of latitude, and came to an anchor in the midst of them,
where they took in wood and water. In January 1548 leaving these islands,
they came in sight of certain other islands, from which the natives came
off to them, in a kind of boats, bearing crosses in their hands, and they
saluted the mariners in the Spanish language, saying, _Buenos dias
Matelotes_, or, good day companions. The Spaniards were much surprised at
being thus accosted in their own language, and seeing such indications of
Christianity, at no great a distance from Spain, not knowing that many of
the natives in these parts had been baptised by Francis de Castro, at the
command of me, Antonio Galvano, an formerly mentioned. From these unlooked-
for circumstances, some of the Spaniards named these islands _Islas de los
Cruzos_, or the Islands of Crosses and others called them _Islas de los
Matelotes_, or the Islands of Companions[101]. On the first of February,
Ruy Lopez came in sight of the noble island of Mindanao, in 9 N.[102].
But he could neither double that inland, owing to contrary winds, nor
would the natives permit him to come to anchor on their coast, because the
five or six christened kings and their people had promised obedience to me
Antonio Galvano, and were unwilling to incur my displeasure.
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