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Page 13
In the island, which I have said before was called Hispana, there are
very lofty and beautiful mountains, great farms, groves and fields,
most fertile both for cultivation and for pasturage, and well adapted
for constructing buildings. The convenience of the harbors in this
island, and the excellence of the rivers, in volume and salubrity,
surpass human belief, unless one should see them. In it the trees,
pasture-lands, and fruits differ much from those of Johana. Besides,
this Hispana abounds in various kinds of spices, gold, and metals.
The inhabitants of both sexes of this and of all the other islands I
have seen, or of which I have any knowledge, always go as naked as
they came into the world, except that some of the women cover parts of
their bodies with leaves or branches, or a veil of cotton, which they
prepare themselves for this purpose. They are all, as I said before,
unprovided with any sort of iron, and they are destitute of arms,
which are entirely unknown to them, and for which they are not
adapted; not on account of any bodily deformity, for they are well
made, but because they are timid and full of terror. They carry,
however, canes dried in the sun in place of weapons, upon whose roots
they fix a wooden shaft, dried and sharpened to a point. But they
never dare to make use of these, for it has often happened, when I
have sent two or three of my men to some of their villages to speak
with the inhabitants, that a crowd of Indians has sallied forth; but,
when they saw our men approaching, they speedily took to flight,
parents abandoning their children, and children their parents.
This happened not because any loss or injury had been inflicted upon
any of them. On the contrary, I gave whatever I had, cloth and many
other things, to whomsoever I approached, or with whom I could get
speech, without any return being made to me; but they are by nature
fearful and timid. But, when they see that they are safe, and all fear
is banished, they are very guileless and honest, and very liberal of
all they have. No one refuses the asker anything that he possesses; on
the contrary, they themselves invite us to ask for it. They manifest
the greatest affection toward all of us, exchanging valuable things
for trifles, content with the very least thing or nothing at all. But
I forbade giving them a very trifling thing and of no value, such as
bits of plates, dishes, or glass, also nails and straps; altho it
seemed to them, if they could get such, that they had acquired the
most beautiful jewels in the world.
For it chanced that a sailor received for a single strap as much
weight of gold as three gold solidi; and so others for other things of
less price, especially for new blancas, and for some gold coins, for
which they gave whatever the seller asked; for instance, an ounce and
a half or two ounces of gold, or thirty or forty pounds of cotton,
with which they were already familiar. So, too, for pieces of hoops,
jugs, jars, and pots they bartered cotton and gold like beasts. This I
forbade, because it was plainly unjust; and I gave them many beautiful
and pleasing things, which I had brought with me, for no return
whatever, in order to win their affection, and that they might become
Christians and inclined to love our king and queen and princes and all
the people of Spain, and that they might be eager to search for and
gather and give to us what they abound in and we greatly need.
They do not practise idolatry; on the contrary, they believe that all
strength, all power, in short, all blessings, are from heaven, and
that I have come down from there with these ships and sailors; and in
this spirit was I received everywhere, after they had got over their
fear They are neither lazy nor awkward, but, on the contrary, are of
an excellent and acute understanding. Those who have sailed these seas
give excellent accounts of everything; but they have never seen men
wearing clothes, or ships like ours....
As soon as I had come into this sea, I took by force some Indians from
the first island, in order that they might learn from us, and at the
same time tell us what they knew about affairs in these regions. This
succeeded admirably; for in a short time we understood them and they
us, both by gesture and signs and words, and they were of great
service to us. They are coming now with me, and have always believed
that I have come from heaven, notwithstanding the long time they have
been, and still remain, with us. They were the first who told this
wherever we went, one calling to another, with a loud voice, "Come,
come, you will see men from heaven." Whereupon both women and men,
children and adults, young and old, laying aside the fear they had
felt a little before, flocked eagerly to see us, a great crowd
thronging about our steps, some bringing food, and others drink, with
greatest love and incredible good will....
I have told already how I sailed in a straight course along the island
of Johana from west to east 322 miles. From this voyage and the extent
of my journeyings I can say that this Johana is larger than England
and Scotland together. For beyond the aforesaid 322 miles, in that
portion which looks toward the west, there are two more provinces,
which I did not visit. One of them the Indians called Anan, and its
inhabitants are born with tails. These provinces extend 180 miles, as
I learned from the Indians, whom I am bringing with me, and who are
well acquainted with all these islands....
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