They Had At This Time A Short
Conference With Three Spanish Horsemen, Through The Medium Of The Poor
Half-Starved
Spaniard they took on board in the Straits of Magellan;
but, in spite of his many oaths and protestations never
To forsake
Candish, he took the opportunity to mount on horseback behind one of his
countrymen, and got off.
Next day, the 1st April, some of the English being on shore filling
their water-casks, the Spaniards became bolder, and watching an
opportunity when the sailors were hard at work, poured down with their
200 horse from the hills, slew some of them, and made a few prisoners.
But this glorious victory was soon snatched from their hands by the
arrival of a reinforcement of fifteen English, who rescued the
prisoners, killed twenty-four of the Spaniards, and drove the rest back
to the mountains. After this, they continued in the road till the 5th,
and watered there in spite of the Spaniards. On the 5th they weighed
anchor, and went to a small island about a league from the bay, which is
full of penguins and other sea fowl, of which they provided themselves
with what store they wanted; after which they sailed N. and N. by W. in
order to prosecute their voyage.
The 15th April they came to Moro Moreno, in lat. 23 deg. 30' S. under the
tropic of Capricorn, where there is an excellent harbour, made by means
of an island, having an entrance for ships at either end. The admiral
went ashore here with thirty men, and was met by the Indians, who
brought them water and wood on their backs. These are a simple sort of
people, living in a wild and savage manner, in great dread of the
Spaniards. They brought the admiral and his company to their houses,
about two miles from the harbour. These were only constructed of a few
rafters laid across upon forked sticks stuck in the ground, having a few
boughs laid over them by way of a roof. Their beds were the skins of
wild beasts laid on the ground; and their food little else than raw
stinking fish. When any of them dies, he is buried with all his arms and
goods, as bows and arrows, and even his canoe is laid in the earth along
with him. Their canoes, if such they may be called, consist of two skin
bags, like large bladders, blown up with quills at one end, and fastened
together by the sinews of some wild beast; yet in these they think
nothing of venturing to sea, loading them even with great quantities of
fish, part of which they have to give in tribute to the Spaniards, the
rest being kept to stink for their own eating.
On the 3d May, they came into a bay on which were three small towns,
Paracca, Chincha, and Pisco, which latter is in lat. 13 deg. 20' S.[51] They
landed here, and took some provisions, as wine, bread, poultry and figs,
from the houses, but could not get ashore at the best of these towns,
owing to the sea running too high.
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