1681.] DESCRIPTION OF THE MOSQUITO INDIANS. fight, and never seem to flinch nor | They marry but one wife, with whom they live till death separates them. At their first coming to gether the man makes a very small plantation, for there is land enough, and they may choose what spot they please. They delight to settle near the sea, or by some river, for the sake of striking fish, their beloved employment. Far within land there are other Indians with whom they are always at war. After the man has cleared a spot of land, and has planted it, he seldom minds it afterwards but leaves the managing of it to his wife, and goes out a-striking. Sometimes he seeks only for fish, at other times for turtle or manatee; and whatever he gets he brings home to his wife, and never stirs out to seek for more till it is all eaten. When hunger begins to bite, he either takes his canoe and seeks for more game at sea, or walks out into the woods and hunts about for peccary, warree-each a 1 Observances. 129 sort of wild hogs-or deer, and seldom returns empty-handed, nor seeks for any more so long as any of it lasts. Their plantations are so small that they cannot subsist with what they produce, for their largest plantations have not above twenty or thirty plantain-trees, a bed of yams and potatoes, a bush of Indian pepper, and a small spot of pine-apples, which last fruit is a main thing they delight in, for with these they make a sort of drink which our men call pine-drink, much esteemed by these Mosquitoes, and to which they invite each other to be merry, providing fish and flesh also. Whoever of them makes of this liquor treats his neighbours, making a little canoe full at a time, and so enough to make them all drunk; and it is seldom that such feasts are made but the party that makes them hath some design, either to be revenged for some injury done him, or to debate of such differences as have happened between him and his neighbours, and to examine into the truth of such matters. Yet before they are warmed with drink they never speak one word of their grievances; and the women, who commonly know their husbands' designs, prevent them from doing any injury to each other by hiding their lances, harpoons, bows and arrows, or any other weapon that they have. While they are among the English they wear good clothes, and take delight to go neat and tight; but when they return again to their own country they put by all their clothes, and go after their own country fashion, wearing only a small piece of linen tied about their waists hanging down to their knees. CHAPTER II. BEING landed, May the 1st, we began our march about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, directing our course by our pocket compasses NE.; and having The Mexican hog, or tajaçu-gone about two miles we came to the Dicotyles tajaçu. foot of a hill, where we built small 130 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. II. huts and lay all night, having exces- 1 Suspecting, apprehending. The 3d, having fair weather, we began to stir betimes, and set out betwixt 6 and 7 o'clock, marching through several old ruined plantations. This morning one of our men, being tired, gave us the slip. By 12 o'clock we had gone eight miles, and arrived at the Indian's house, who lived on the bank of the River Congo, and spoke very good Spanish; to whom we declared the reason of this visit. At first he seemed to be very dubious of entertaining any discourse with us, and gave very impertinent answers to the questions that we demanded of him; he told us he knew no way to the north side of the country, but could carry us to Chepo, or to Santa Maria, which we knew to be Spanish garrisons, the one lying to the eastward of us, the other to the westward: either of them at least twenty miles out of our way. We could get no other answer from him, and all his discourse was in such an angry tone as plainly declared he was not our friend. However, we were forced to make a virtue of necessity and humour him; for it was neither time nor place to be angry with the Indians, all our lives lying in their hand. We were now at a great loss, not knowing what course to take, for we tempted him with beads, money, hatchets, macheats or long knives, but nothing would work on him, till one of our men took a sky-coloured petticoat out of his bag, and put it on his wife; who was so much pleased with the present, that she immediately began to chatter to her husband, and soon brought him into a better humour. He could then tell us that he knew the way to the north side, and would have gone with us, but that he had cut his foot two days before, which made him incapable of serving us himself: but he would take care that we should not want a guide; and therefore he hired the same Indian who brought us hither, to conduct us two days' march farther for another hatchet. The old man would have stayed us here all the day, be 1681.] A MARCH TO THE COAST. 131 had; for we still provided for the sick vided ourselves for a march the next cause it rained very hard; but our | business required more haste, our enemies lying so near us, for he told us that he could go from his house aboard the guard-ship in a tide's time; and this was the fourth day since they saw us. So we marched three miles farther, and then built huts, where we stayed all night; it rained all the afternoon, and the greatest part of the night. The 4th, we began our march betimes, for the forenoons were commonly fair, but much rain after noon; though whether it rained or shined it was much at one with us, for I verily believed we crossed the rivers thirty times this day: the Indians hav-munition, cleared our guns, and proing no paths to travel from one part of the country to another, and therefore, guiding themselves by the rivers. We marched this day twelve miles, and then built our huts and lay down to sleep; but we always kept two men on the watch, otherwise our own slaves might have knocked us on the head while we slept. It rained violently all the afternoon and most part of the night. We had much ado to kindle a fire this evening our huts were but very mean or ordinary, and our fire small, so that we could not dry our clothes, scarce warm ourselves, and no sort of food for the belly; all which made it very hard with us. I confess these hardships quite expelled the thoughts of an enemy; for now, having been four days in the country, we began to have but few other cares than how to get guides and food: the Spaniards were seldom in our thoughts. The 5th, we set out in the morning betimes, and having travelled seven miles in those wild pathless woods, by 10 o'clock in the morning we arrived at a young Spanish Indian's house who had formerly lived with the Bishop of Panama. The young Indian was very brisk, spoke very good Spanish, and received us very kindly. This plantation afforded us store of provision, yams, and potatoes, but nothing of any flesh besides two fat monkeys we shot, part whereof we distributed to some of our company who were weak and sickly; for others we got eggs, and such refreshments as the Indians This The 6th, we set out again, having hired another guide. Here we first crossed the River Congo in a canoe, having been from our first landing on the west side of the river; and being over, we marched to the eastwards two miles, and came to another river, which we forded several times, though it was very deep. Two of our men were not able to keep company with us, but came after us as they were able. The last time we forded the river, it was so deep, that our tallest men stood in the deepest place and handed the sick, weak, and short men; by which means we all got over safe, except those two who were behind. Foreseeing a necessity of wading through rivers frequently in our land march, I took care, before I left the ship, to provide myself a large joint of bamboo, which I stopped at both ends, closing it with wax, so as to keep out any water. In this I preserved my journal and other writings from being wet, though I was often forced to swim. When we were over this river, we sat down to wait the coming of our consorts who were left behind, and in half an hour they came. But the river by that time was so high, that they could not get over it; neither could we help them over, but bid them be of good comfort and stay till the river did fall: but we marched two miles farther by the side of the river, and there built our huts, having gone this day six miles. We had scarce finished our huts before the river rose much higher, and, overflowing the banks, obliged us to remove into higher ground: but the night came on before we could build more huts, so we lay straggling in the woods, some under one tree, some under another, as we could find conveniency; which might have been indifferent comfortable if the weather had been fair, but the greatest part of the night we had extraordinary hard rain, with much lightning and terrible claps of thunder. These hardships and inconveniences made us all careless, and there was no watch kept (though I believe nobody did sleep); so our slaves, taking opportunity, went away in the night, all but one who was hid in some hole and knew nothing of their design, or else fell asleep. Those that went away carried with them our Surgeon's gun and all his money. The next morning, being the 8th, we went to the river's side and found it much fallen; and here our guide would have us ford it again, which, being deep, and the current running swift, we could not. Then we contrived1 to swim over; those that could not swim we were resolved to help over as well as we could; but this was not so feasible, for we should not be able to get all our things over. At length we concluded to send one man over with 1 Planned, sought to devise means. a line, who should haul over all our things first, and then get the men over. This being agreed on, one George Gayny took the end of a line, and made it fast about his neck, and left the other end ashore; and one man stood by the line, to clear it away to him. But when Gayny was in the midst of the water, the line in drawing after him chanced to kink, or grow entangled; and he that stood by to clear it away stopped the line, which turned Gayny on his back, and he that had the line in his hand threw it all into the river after him, thinking he might recover himself; but the stream running very swift, and the man having three hundred dollars at his back, [he] was carried down, and never seen more by us. Those two men whom we left behind the day before told us afterwards that they found him lying dead in a creek, where the eddy had driven him ashore, and the money on his back; but they meddled not with any of it, being only in care how to work their way through a wild unknown country. This put a period to that contrivance. This was the fourth man that we lost in this land journey; for those two men that we left the day before did not come to us till we were in the North Seas, so we yielded them also for lost. Being frustrated of getting over the river this way, we looked about for a tree to fell across the river. At length we found one, which we cut down, and it reached clear over; on this we passed to the other side, where we found a small plantain walk, which we soon ransacked. While we were busy getting plantains, our guide was gone; but in less than two hours came to us again, and brought with him an old Indian, to whom he delivered up his charge; and we gave him a hatchet and dismissed him, and entered ourselves under the conduct of our new guide: who immediately led us away, and crossed another river, and entered into a large valley of the fattest land I did ever take notice of; the trees were not very thick, but the largest that I saw in all my travels. We 1681.] THE MARCH CONTINUED. 133 saw great tracks which were made by | or part of the way; which they prothe peccaries, but saw none of them. mised to do themselves if we would We marched in this pleasant country reward them for it; but told us we till 3 o'clock in the afternoon, in all must lie still the next day. But we about four miles, and then arrived at thought ourselves nearer the North the old man's country-house, which Sea than we were, and proposed to go was only a habitation for hunting; without a guide rather than stay here there was a small plantain walk, a whole day. However some of our some yams and potatoes. Here we took up our quarters for this day, and refreshed ourselves with such food as the place afforded, and dried our clothes and ammunition. At this place our young Spanish Indian provided to leave us, for now we thought ourselves past danger. This was he that was persuaded to stay at the last house we came from, to marry the young man's sister; and we dismissed him according to our promise. 2 The 9th the old man conducted us towards his own habitation. We marched about five miles in this valley, and then ascended a hill, and travelled about five miles farther over two or three small hills before we came to any settlement. Half a mile before we came to the plantations we light of a path, which carried us to the Indians' habitations. We saw many wooden crosses erected in the way, which created some jealousy in us that here were some Spaniards; therefore we new-primed all our guns, and provided ourselves for an enemy; but coming into the town [we] found none but Indians, who were all got together in a large house to receive us: for the old man had a little boy with him that he sent before. They made us welcome to such as they had, which was very mean; for these were new plantations, the corn being not eared Potatoes, yams, and plantains they had none but what they brought from their old plantations. There were none of them spoke good Spanish; two young men could speak a little; it caused us to take more notice of them. To these we made a present and desired them to get us a guide to conduct us to the north side, 1 Came upon, lighted upon. Suspicion; to "jalouse" is still used in Scotland for to suspect. men who were tired, resolved to stay 3 Of no advantage. This 4 Or Guan; Penelope cristata, a bird resembling the curassow, thirty inches long, of a dusky black above, glossed with green and olive, the neck and i breast spotted with white. |