Part 15

AT eleven o'clock at night, when the Indians and Spaniards were resting, without light or fire for fear of betraying their presence to the Guaycurús, one of the spies, who had been sent to observe the enemy's movements, came into camp, and reported that he had seen them setting up their village. The governor was much pleased on hearing this news, as he had feared that they might have heard the reports of the firing that had taken place in the confusion of the night. Having learned from this spy that the spot they had fixed upon for their settlement was three leagues off, he gave orders to strike the camp, and march slowly forward, in order not to arrive at the place too early, so as to be ready to begin the attack at daybreak. As a security to the friendly Indians, and to distinguish them from the enemy, he ordered them all to paint white crosses on their chests and shoulders, so that the Spaniards might recognise them as friends, and not kill them by mistake for Guaycurús. Although this precaution was adopted, it did not avail much in the obscurity of night, when friend and foe became mixed up in hand to hand fighting, and the quick blows of the sword could not be arrested.

We marched till break of day, and then reached the enemy's habitations, waiting till daylight before delivering the attack. In order that the horses might not, by their neighing, give the enemy warning, the governor ordered their mouths to be filled with grass; meanwhile the Indians were directed to surround the enemy's position, leaving a passage for his escape to the mountains, so that the carnage might not be too great.

While waiting in expectation, the Guaranís were almost paralysed with fear; nothing would induce them to begin the attack, notwithstanding the entreaties and persuasion of the governor. Soon after the drums of the Guaycurús were heard beating to arms, and challenging anybody to come and fight them, saying they were few in numbers, but more valiant than any other tribe in the land; that they were masters of it, and of all the animals contained in it; they were lords also of the rivers and the fish. These people, who are accustomed to keep watch every night, a little before daybreak came forward and threw themselves on the ground, and in this position saw the host of our army, and the lighted fuses of the arquebuses. And when they saw this they cried aloud, "Who are you that dare come to our houses?" And a Christian who knew their language answered: "I am Hector (this was his name) and I have come with my people to barter (the corresponding word in their language meaning revenge) the death of the Batates[323] whom you slaughtered." Then they answered, "Cursed be your coming, for you shall be served as they were." Having thus spoken, they threw the burning logs they held in their hands at the Spaniards, and then rushed into their huts, seized their bows and arrows, and attacked our people with such impetuosity and courage that they appeared to make no account of them. The Indians who had come with the governor showed great cowardice, and would have fled had they dared to do so. Alvar Nuñez, seeing this, entrusted the artillery to Don Diego de Barba; Captain Salazar was placed in command of the Spanish infantry and Indians, these latter being in two divisions. He ordered the breastplates to be put on the horses, and, thus arrayed in order of battle, our forces charged the enemy with cries of "_Santiago!_" The governor, on horseback, led the van, and cut down all that opposed him. When the enemy saw the horses for the first time, a great fear fell upon them, and they fled to the mountains as quickly as they could. Passing through their village, they set fire to their houses, and these being made of mats of rush and grass, caught fire at once, the flames spreading to the others, about twenty in number, all portable, and each having a length of five hundred paces. Their owners, numbering about four thousand warriors, retired behind the smoke caused by the burning houses, and whilst so concealed killed two Christians, and decapitated twelve of our friendly Indians. This operation is performed by the aid of two or three teeth of a fish called the _palometa_, which bites fish-hooks in two. These teeth are attached to a small stick. The Guaycurús, holding their prisoners by the hair of the head, pass this instrument round their neck, and with a twist or two of the head, completely sever it from the body, and carry it off by the hair. They will perform this operation while they are running, as if it were the easiest thing possible.[324]

[323]? Guatatas, _supra_, p. 142.

[324] Cf. _supra_, p. 55.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-SIXTH.

_How the governor pursued the enemy._

HAVING defeated the Guaycurús, the governor pursued them. As one of the horsemen was following him, an Indian of the enemy seized hold of the mare he was riding by the neck, and pierced her through and through with three arrows he held in his hand; nor could they make him loose his hold of the animal before they had killed him. If the governor had not been present at this fight the victory would have been doubtful.

These Indians are very tall, swift of foot, valiant and strong. They are Gentiles, having no fixed abode, and subsist by hunting and fishing. No nation had ever conquered them before the Spaniards, and their idea is, if anyone should vanquish them, to serve them as slaves. Their women are allowed the right of delivering a prisoner who has fallen into their hands, so that he shall neither be killed nor enslaved, and if he choose to remain among them, he is treated as one of their own people. These women have certainly more liberty than that bestowed on our women in Spain by Queen Isabella, our Sovereign Lady. The governor and his people, being tired of pursuing the enemy, returned to camp, and having assembled his army, began his march towards Ascension, followed by the Guaycurús a great distance, arms in hand; and the governor had much trouble to keep his men together, and prevent them being cut down by those of the enemy who had escaped in the fighting; for a Guaraní having possessed himself of a feather, an arrow, or a mat of the enemy's, will return home alone without taking the precaution of waiting for his companions. In this way it happened that one thousand of the Guaranís were caught and killed singly by about twenty Guaycurús. Four hundred prisoners, men, women and children, were made in that expedition.

During the return march the horsemen speared a number of deer, and the Indians were surprised to see the swiftness of the horses, which could overtake the deer. They, too, killed very many with their arrows. At four o'clock in the afternoon a halt was made under some large trees, and they passed the night here, having stationed sentinels to keep a good watch.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-SEVENTH.

_How the governor and all his people returned to the town of Ascension._

THE following day, in broad daylight, they set out in good order, hunting as they marched, and a number of deer and ostriches were killed. Some of the former were even killed by the Spaniards with their swords, as they fled from the horsemen and Indians and sought refuge in the ranks of the infantry. It was a strange and very pleasant sight to see the chase that day. One hour-and-a-half before nightfall they arrived on the river Paraguai, where the governor had left the two brigantines and the canoes. And that day they began passing the men and horses over to the other side, and continued this the following day from morn till midday, by which time all had been ferried across, and the governor and his people marched on to the town of Ascension, where he had left a garrison of two hundred and fifty men, under the orders of Gonzalo de Mendoza. This captain had made prisoners six Indians of the tribe of Yapirús,[325] who are tall and valiant men, good warriors and runners. They neither cultivate the land nor rear animals, but live exclusively by the chase and fishing; they are enemies of the Guaranís and Guaycurús. Gonzalo de Mendoza informed the governor that these Indians had arrived the previous day, having crossed the Paraguai; and had said that their tribesmen had heard of the war waged against the Guaycurús, and that they and all the other tribes were dismayed on hearing of this, and that their chief had sent them to make it known that they wished to be friendly with the Christians, and to offer their help, should it be wanted, against the Guaycurús. Gonzalo de Mendoza had suspected treachery in all this, and that their real object was to spy out the place; he had therefore detained them prisoners till he could satisfy himself of their sincerity of purpose. The governor ordered them to be brought at once before him, and having sent for a Spanish interpreter who knew their language, questioned them separately as to the objects of their coming. Having seen that it would be to the advantage of His Majesty's service, he treated them kindly, and gave them many presents for them and their chief, promising he would receive them into his amity as subjects of His Majesty, and would protect and defend them, provided that they desisted from making war on the Guaranís, who were vassals of His Majesty, and that this had been the cause of the war he had made against the Guaycurús; then he dismissed them, well satisfied.

[325] Cf. _supra_, pp. 54 _seqq._

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-EIGHTH.

_How the Indian Agazes broke the peace._

GONZALO DE MENDOZA, besides what has been related in the previous chapter, also told the governor that the tribe of Agazes with whom a peace had been made, that very night on which he had started on his campaign against the Guaycurús, had come armed to set fire to the town, and make war upon the Spaniards. These Indians, however, had been seen by the sentries, who had sounded the alarm. Perceiving that they were discovered, they had then taken to flight, and made a raid upon the cultivated land and establishments of the Spaniards, from whom they had taken a number of Guaraní women newly converted to Christianity. Since then they had come every night to maraud and pillage the land, causing much injury to the natives, and had thus broken the peace. The women of their own tribe, whom they had given as hostages for their good behaviour, had that same night of their arrival escaped, and were believed to have informed their people that the town was short of defenders, and that now was the time to kill the Christians. Following the advice of these women they had begun the war, and, as they are wont to do, had laid waste the dwellings of the Spaniards, where they kept their provisions, and had carried away upwards of thirty Guaraní women. The governor caused an inquiry to be made into this, and convoked the monks, clergy, officers and captains, whom he informed of the acts of the Agazes, and how they had broken faith, ordering them in the name of His Majesty to give their opinion in writing as to what they advised should be done, and to sign it with their names. And all agreed to follow this advice, whatever it might be. Then, having discussed and considered the affair thoroughly, they were all of one accord, that war should be made with fire and sword to punish the Agazes for the wrongs and injuries they had committed, and were still committing, in the country. This opinion was unanimous, and signed by all.

In order still further to establish the criminality of their acts, Alvar Nuñez ordered a judicial inquest to be held, and when this was terminated he added it to four others previously entered against them before his arrival. The Christians formerly resident in that country had slain over one thousand of these Indians because of the losses they were constantly inflicting upon them.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-NINTH.

_How the governor set at liberty one of the captive Guaycurús, and sent him to summon his fellow tribesmen._

HAVING proceeded against the Guaycurús as we have said, the governor sent for the chiefs of the Guaranís who had marched against the Guaycurús, and ordered them to bring before him all the prisoners they had taken on that expedition, and that none should be concealed, under a severe penalty. The Spaniards also brought theirs, and when all were assembled, he told them His Majesty had ordered that none of those Guaycurús should be enslaved, because all had not been done that ought to have been done to ascertain their condition, and that His Majesty would be rather pleased if these prisoners were given their liberty. Among these captives was one of superior breeding and appearance, whom the governor ordered to be set free, desiring him to summon all his fellow tribesmen, because he had something to say to them in the name of the king, and that if they wished he would protect them, and give them presents, and so he let him go, giving him some presents; and he departed, well satisfied, to his own people. Four days afterwards, he returned accompanied by all his tribe, many of whom were badly wounded; all came, leaving none behind.

CHAPTER THE THIRTIETH.

_How the Guaycurús came and submitted to His Majesty._

FOUR days after the departure of the prisoner, one Monday morning, he arrived on the bank of the river, accompanied by all his tribe; and they halted by a wood on the bank of the Paraguai. When the governor was informed of it he sent several canoes across with some Christians and interpreters to bring them to the town. Twenty of the Guaycurús having crossed in the canoes, came before the governor, and squatted on one foot in his presence, as they are accustomed to do. They spoke through an interpreter, and said as follows: "We are the chiefs of the Guaycurús, and our forefathers have always been at war with all the tribes of this land--Guaranís, Ymperus,[326] Agazes, Guatatas, Naperús, Mayas, and many others, whom we have hitherto always vanquished, and no people has ever conquered us, and we never thought we should be conquered by anyone. Now we have found others more valiant than ourselves, and we have come to place ourselves in their power and be their slaves. You are the chief of the Spaniards, command us and we will obey your orders. The Guaranís know full well that they are not strong enough to make war on us; we fear them not. They would never have dared to interfere with us without the aid of the Spaniards. Our wives and children are on the opposite bank and are ready to make their submission as we have done. We speak in our own name and on behalf of all our tribe. We have come to offer our submission to the King of the Spaniards."

[326] Yapirús: cf. _supra_, p. 149.

CHAPTER THE THIRTY-FIRST.

_How the governor, after making peace with the Guaycurús, delivered the prisoners to them._

HAVING heard what the envoys of the Guaycurús had said, the governor, seeing that so redoubtable a people had come to place themselves in his power with so much submission (a thing that caused much surprise throughout the land), desired them to be informed, through interpreters, that he had come by order of His Majesty to bring all the people to the knowledge of Our Lord, to be Christians and vassals of His Majesty, and to be well treated; if they ceased making war upon the Guaranís he would protect and regard them as friends, and would treat them better than other nations, and that he would restore all the captives taken from them without ransom, both those taken by the Spaniards and Guaranís. And this was thereupon done. When the Guaycurús had received them, they affirmed once more their wish to become vassals of His Majesty, promising obedience and submission, and that they would henceforth not molest the Guaranís, and that they would bring whatever they took, to the town for the provisionment of the Spaniards. Alvar Nuñez was much pleased with their promises, and he distributed gifts and jewels among the chiefs, and peace was cemented.

Since then they have always kept the peace, and whenever the governor sent for them, hastened to obey his commands. Every eighth day they came laden with venison and wild boar, roasted on _barbacoas_.[327] These barbacoas are like gridirons, standing two palms high above the ground, and made of light sticks. The flesh is cut into steaks and then laid upon them and roasted. They also brought much fish and plenty of other provisions, such as grease, linen mantles woven of a kind of teasel,[328] dyed in bright colours; and skins of the tiger and tapir, deer and other animals. When they came, the markets for the sale of all these commodities lasted two days. The natives of the other side of the river bartered with them; it was a very great market, and they (the Guaycurús) behaved peacefully towards the Guaranís. These gave them, in exchange for their commodities, maize, manioc, and mandubis; these last are like hazel nuts or _chufas_, and grow near the ground[329]; they also supplied them with bows and arrows. Two hundred canoes crossed the river together for this market, laden with all these things; and it was the finest thing in the world to see them cross. The celerity of their movements is such that they sometimes collide with one another, and all the merchandise falls into the water. Then the Indians to whom this happens, and those awaiting them on the bank, burst into fits of laughter, and the jokes and merriment continue all the time the market is being held. They come to this market in full paint and in their feathers, and all in this fine plumage are carried down the river, and they vie one with the other who shall be the first across; and this is the cause of their frequent collisions and upsets. In their marketing they talk so loud and so much, that they cannot hear one another for the noise, and all are very gay and jolly.

[327] _Barbacoa_, i.e., _parrillas_.

[328] There are several classes of teasel (_cardas_) in Paraguai. The fibres of one of them (the _caraguatá_) are used instead of hemp and thread.

[329] Pea-nuts.

CHAPTER THE THIRTY-SECOND.

_How the Apirús came and made a treaty of peace and submitted._

A FEW days after the departure of the six Apirús to return to their tribe in accordance with the instructions of the governor, some of these people arrived one Sunday morning on the bank of the river opposite Ascension, and from the signs they made it was evident they wished to cross. Thereupon Alvar Nuñez sent canoes to the other side to find out what people they were. As the canoes touched the opposite bank the Indians entered them and came over to the city. On presenting themselves to the governor they said they were of the tribe of Apirús, and having seated themselves on one foot in token of their mission being a peaceful one, they stated they were the chiefs of that tribe, and had come to make acquaintance with the chief of the Christians and to be friends with him, and obey his orders.

The expedition against the Guaycurús had been noised through the land, and had caused much fear among all the tribes, inasmuch as these Indians, the most valiant and redoubtable of all in that country, should have been attacked and defeated by the Christians. In proof of the peace and amity they (the Apirús) were desirous of maintaining with the Christians, they had brought some of their daughters, and entreated the governor to accept them as hostages and as proofs of their goodwill and friendship. In the presence of the captains and clergy, the governor replied that he wished them to understand that he had come to that country in order that its people might be brought to the true Christian faith and become the subjects of His Majesty; he enjoined them to make peace with the Guaranís, who had become vassals of the king, and he promised if they would keep the peace and live in friendship with all the natives of that land, that he would favour and protect them, and allow them to come whenever they wished to the city of Ascension to barter with the Christians and Indians residing there, as the Guaycurús had been allowed to do since peace had been made with them. To make sure of their loyalty, and to please them by showing the value he set on their friendship, he consented to receive as hostages the women and girls they had brought, entrusting them to the care of the monks and clergy, in order that they might be instructed in the doctrines of Christianity, and be taught good manners and customs. To all this the Indians assented, and showed much pleasure and satisfaction at becoming the king's vassals. Since that time they have behaved obediently, and shown a readiness to obey the governor's orders. The interview terminated, the Yapirús received many presents, and took their departure well satisfied. These Indians never remain in one place more than three days, but are continually engaged in hunting and fishing in order to provide subsistence for their wives and families. These habits of life, and their want of a fixed abode, rendered it impossible for the clergy to teach them the Christian religion, for the necessities of their lives prevented them from abandoning their nomadic habits, dependent as they were upon these for the means of procuring food; if, on the other hand, they were to be compelled to give up this mode of livelihood, they might die of hunger. Hence it would be lost labour to teach them, nor could the monks live with them, owing to the insecurity of remaining among a people so little to be trusted.

CHAPTER THE THIRTY-THIRD.

_Of the judgment passed on the Agazes by the advice of the monks, captains, and other officers of His Majesty._

HAVING received the submission of the aforesaid Indians, as related in the previous chapter, Alvar Nuñez desired to be shown the act of accusation drawn up against the Agazes. Having seen this and the former judgments entered against this people, it seemed to him that their guilt had been clearly established for the robberies and murders committed by them in the land. He then summoned the monks and the clergy, the captains and officers, and showed them the act of accusation and the instructions he had received from the king; and having well considered it, they all unanimously advised that he should make war upon the Agazes with fire and sword, for the service of God and His Majesty. In the first place, however, thirteen or fourteen of these Indians, who had been made prisoners, were condemned to death. The Alcalde Mayor,[330] upon whom devolved the carrying out of this sentence, entering the prison with certain others to fetch them out to be executed, was suddenly attacked by them with knives, and might have been killed, had not some persons hastened to succour him, and used their swords to protect him. In the scuffle which ensued two of the prisoners were slain with the sword, and the rest were taken out and hanged.

[330] The Alcalde mayor was the mayor of the city.

CHAPTER THE THIRTY-FOURTH.

_How the governor sent relief to Buenos Ayres._