Pilgrimage, Book 8 · Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII.
Of the Countries situate Weslward from Florida and Virginia towards the South Sea.
HItherto we hauehave discouered those parts of this Northern America, which trend along the North sea, which the English & French Nations hauehave most made knowne vntounto vsus: further westward the midland Countries are not so well known; yet following our Spanish guides we here present them from their relations to your view. When as Cortez had conquered Mexico, as after followeth to be related, he was made Admirall of the South seas, but the gouernement of Mexico and new Spaine was, with the title of Viceroy, giuen to Don Antonio de Mendoza. These two, partly in emulation of each others glorie, partly in hope of enriching themselues, sought to discouer vnknown lands; the one by Sea; the later, both by sea and land.
The Viceroy sent aIn his letter to the Emperour …p. Hack. to.3.as he himselfe testifieth, Francis Vasquez de Coronado, and Frier Marco de Nisae, with Stephen a Negro by land: out of whole relations we hauehave inserted that which concerneth our purpose. Marke bMarco de Nisa his relation.the Frier, and Stephen set forth with certaine Indians in this Discouerie: and Stephen going before, came to Ceuola, as Marke related, where hee was slaine: the Frier followed with his Indian guides, and passed thorough one place where was small store of victuall, because it had not there rained, as the Inhabitants affirmed, in three yeares space. The Indians called him Hayota, that is, a man come from heauen. He passed on further, led by the fame of Cevola, which with other six cities were reported to be vnderunder the gouernment of one Lord, & to hauehave houses of stone, cōsisting of diuers stories, where were many Turqueses, with many other strāge reports of their markets, multitudes, and wealth. But because the Frier came not there for feare of the Negroes entertainment, let vsus listen to cF. Vasquez his relation.Francis Vasques, who came, saw, and ouercame. An.1540. he went with his army from Culiacan which is 200. leagues from Mexico, & after a long and tedious iourney, he at last arriued in this prouince, and conquered (almost with the losse of himselfe) the first Citie of the seuen, which he called Cranado. Twice he was stricken down with stones from the wall, as he offered to scale the fame. He saith that their houses were of foure or fiue stories or lofts, to which they ascended on ladders: and that they had sellers vnderunder the ground, good, and paued. But those seuen cities were small townes, all standing in the compasse of foure leagues, all called by that generall name of Cevol… or Cibola, and none of them particularly so called, but hauing other peculiar names, they were of like building. In this towne which he conquered stood 200 houses, walled about, and 300. others not walled. The Inhabitants had before remoued their wiues & wealth to the hill. He reporteth of beasts there, beares, tigres, lions, and sheep, as big as horses, with great hornes, & little tailes, Ounces also & stags. That which the Indians worshipped (as far as they could learne) was the water, which, said they, caused the corne to grow, and maintained their life. Hee found there a garment excellently embroidered with needle-worke. Vasques went hence to Tiguez, to Cicuic, and to Quivira, as dF.Lop.c. 212. 213. & 214.Lopes de Gomar a reporteth. This way is full of crooke-backed oxen. Quivira is in forty degrees, and the Countrey is temperate. They saw ships in the Sea with bare Alcatoazes or Pelicans of gold and siluer in their prowes, laden with merchandise: which they tooke to be of China or Cathay.
The men in these parts clothe & shooe themselues with leather: they hauehave no bread of any kinde of graine: their cheefe food is flesh, which they often eate raw, either for custome, or for lacke of wood. They eate the fatte as they take it out of the oxe, & drink the bloud hote (which of our bulls is counted poison) & the flesh they warme (for they seeth it not) at a fire of oxe-dung. They rather may be said to rauen, then to eate it: and holding the flesh with their teeth, cut it with rasors of stone. They goe in companies as the Scythian Nomades, Tartarian Hords, & many other nations, following the seasons and best pasturings for their oxen. These oxen eOxen of Quivira.are of the bignes and colour of our buls, but their horns ate not so great. They hauehave a great bunch vponupon their shoulders, & more haire on their fore-part, then on the hinder: and it is like wooll. They hauehave, as it were, a horse-m…ne on their back-bone, and much haire, & very long, from their knees downwards. They hauehave great tufts of haire on their foreheads, and hauehave a kinde of beard vnderunder their chinnes and throates. The Males hauehave very long tailes, with a great knobbe or flocke at the end: so that in some respect they resemble a Lyon, in other the Camels, Horses, Oxen, Sheep, or Goates. They push with their hornes, and in their rage vvould ouertake and kill a Horse: for the Horses fled from them, either for their deformitie, or because they had neuer seene the like. The people hauehave no other riches: they are vntounto them meate, drinke, apparell: their Hides also yeeld them houses, and ropes; their bones, bodkins; their sinewes and haire, thread; their Hornes, Mawes, and Bladders, Vessels; their dung, fire; the Calues-skinnes, budgets, where with they draw and keepe water.
G…mara also mentioneth their sheepe, which they so call because they hauehave fine wooll and hornes: they are as bigge as horses, weigh fifty pound weight a peece. There are also Dogges which will fight with a Bull, and will carry fifty pound weight in Sackes when they go on hunting: for when they remoue from place to place with their heards.
The Winter is long and sharpe, with much snow in Cibola, and therefore they then keepe in their Cellers which are in place of Stoves vntounto them. In the height of seuen and thirty degrees, at Tiguez, the cold was so extreme, that the horses and men passed ouer the Riuer vponupon the Ice: They there tooke a towne fTaking of Tiguez.after fiue and forty daies siege, but with much losse, and little gaine. For the Indians killed thirtie horses in a night: and in an other slew certaine Spaniard, sent Ouando vp into the country (they could not tell whether for Sacrifice, or for the shew) & wounded fiftie horses: they drunke Snow in stead of water: and seeing no hope to hold out, made a great fire, and cast therein all they had of worth, and then went all out to make way by by force; where they were all in manner slaine, but not vnreuenged, forcing some Spaniards to accompany them into the Regions of death, and wounding many more, both men and horses. The Snow continueth in these parts halfe the yeare. Quivira is more northerly, and yet more temperate. The Spaniards returned to Mexico in the end of the yeare 1542, to no small griefe of Mendoza, who had spent in this expectation 60000 ducats. Some Friers stayed, but were slaine by the people of Quivira, only one man escaped, to bring newes to Mexico.
Sir Francis Drake sailed on the other side of America to forty degrees of northerly latitude, and with cold was forced to retire, although the Sunne followed him all the way from Guatulco hither (which he sailed from the sixt day of Aprill to the fift day of Iune) as if that most excellent and heauenly Light had delighted himselfe in his societie, and acknowledged him for his sonne, more truly then the Spaniards (whereof anon we shall heate) or that gOuid.Metamorph.libr.2.Phaeto… of the Poets, not able to compasse this compassing iourney: once, he was so good a scholer and learned the sunnes instruction so well, that he folowed him in a watery field, all that his fiery circle, round about this earthly globe, carried with the mouing winde (as it were aery wings) new starres, ilands, seas, attending and admiring the English colours: and first of hMagellanes victorie (so was his ship called) had won this victorie, but lost his Generall.any Generall, loosed the girdle of the world… and encompassing her in his fortunate armes, enioyed her louelove. But I loose myselfe while I finde him: and yet excellent names, I know not how, compell men to stand awhile, and gaze with admiration, if not with adoration. This our English knight iSir Francis Drake. Hack. l0.3.landed on this coast in thirty eight Degrees, where the Inhabitants presented themselues vntounto him, with presents of feathers, and kalls of net-worke, which hee requited with great humanitie. The men went naked, the women knit loose garments of bull-rushes about their middles. They came a second time, and brought feathers, and bagges of Tabacco; and after a long Oration of one that was Speaker for the rest, they left their bowes on a hill, and came downe to our men: the women meane while remaining on the hill, tormented themselues, tearing their flesh from their cheekes, whereby it appeared that they were about some sacrifice. The newes being further spread, brought the King thither, which was a man of goodly stature: many tall men attended him: two Ambassadours with a long Speech of halfe an houre, signified his comming before. One, went before the King with a Scepter or Mace, whereon hanged two Crownes with three Chaines: the Crownes were of knit-worke, wrought artificially with diuers coloured feathers, the chaines of a bony substance. The King followed clothed in conyskinnes: the people came after, all hauing their faces painted with white, blacke, and other colours, eueryevery one bringing his present, euen the very children also. The Scepterbearer made a lowd speech of halfe an houre, taking his words from an other which whispered the same vntounto him, which with a solemne applause being ended, they came all downe the hil in order without their weapons: the Scepter-bearer beginning a song and dancing, wherein all the rest followed him. The King, and diuers others, made seuerall Orations or Supplications to the Generall, to become their King: and the King with a song did set the Crowne on the Generalls head, and put the chaines about his necke, honoring him by the name of Hioh. The common sort leauing the King and his guard, scattered themselues, with their sacrifices, among our people, taking view of all, and to such as best pleased their fancie, which were the yongest, offered their sacrifices, with weeping, scratching, and tearing their flesh, with much effusion of bloud. The English misliked their deuotions, and directed them to the liuing God: they shewed againe their wounds, whereunto the other applied plaisters and lotions. EueryEvery third day they brought their sacrifices, till they perceiued that they were displeasing. And at the departure of the English, they (by stealth) prouided a sacrifice, taking their departing verie grieuously.
They found heards of Deere feeding by thousands, and the country full of strange conies, headed like ours, with the feet of a Want. and taile of a Cat, hauing vnderunder their chins, a bagge, into which they gather their meate when they hauehave filled their body abroade. There is no part of the earth, wherein there is not some speciall likelihoode of golde or siluer. The Generall named the Countrey kNova Albion.Nova Albion. In the yere 1581. lHistory of China by Fr. Iuan Gonsalez de Mendosa.Augustine Ruiz, a Frier, learned by the report of certaine Indians called Conchos, that toward the north there were certaine great townes, not hitherto discouered by the Spaniards: whereupon, he, with two other companions of his owne Order, and eight souldiers, went to seek these parts, and to preach vntounto them. They came vntounto the Prouince de los Tiguas, two hundred and fifty leagues Northwards from the mines of Saint Barbara, where one of the Friers was slaine by the Inhabitants. This caused the souldiers to returne backe, but the Friers staied still behind. The Franciscans fearing the losse of these their brethren, procured Antonio de Espeio mAn.de Espeio Nouemb.1512to vndertake this iourney, with a company of souldiers. He passing the Conchos, the Pas…aquates, the Toboses, came to the Patarabueyes, which is a great Prouince, and hath many townes, their houses flat roofed, and built of lime and stone, their streets orderly placed. The people are of great stature, and hauehave their faces, armes, and legges rased and pownced. Here nNew Mexico.were many Lakes of salt-water, which at a certaine time of the yeare waxeth hard, and becommeth very good salt. The Caciques kindly entertained them with victualles and other presents, especially hides, and Chamois skinnes very well dresled, as well as those of Flanders: And passing many dayes iourney further Northwards, they came where the houses were foure stories high, well built, and in most of them, stoues for the winter season. The men and women weare shooes and boots with good soales of neats leather, a thing not else where to be seene in the Indies. In this prouince they found many Idoles, which they worshipped: and particularly they had in eueryevery house an oratory for the deuill, whereinto they ordinarily carry him meate: and as the Papists erect Crosses vponupon high-wayes, so hauehave this people certaine high Chappells, very well trimmed and painted, in which they say the deuill vseth to take his case, and to recreate himselfe as hee trauelleth from one towne to an other. In the prouince of Tiguas there were sixteene townes, in one of which the Friers aforesaid were slaine. Six leagues from thence was the prouince Los Quires which worship Idoles as their neighbors: they saw there certaine Canopies, wherein were painted, the Sunne, Moone, and many Starres. It is in 37 ½. Hence they passed, keeping still their northerly course, and found a Prouince called Cuuames, where were fiue townes, one of which was Chia, which contained eight market places, the houses were plaistered and painted with diuers colours: they presented them curious mantles, and shewed them rich mettalls. Beyond this they came to the Ameies, and fifteene leagues thence, to Acoma, which is situate vponupon a rocke: and hath no other entrance but by a ladder, or paire of staires, hewen in the same rocke: all their water was kept in cisterns. They passed hence to Zuny, which the Spaniards call Cibola, and there found three Spaniards left there by Vasques forty yeres before, which had almost forgotten their owne language. Westward from hence they came to Mohotze, where were exceeding rich mines of siluer, as likewise in some of the other. These parts seeme to incline toward Virginia.
Now that we hauehave heard of the in-land Discoueries by the Spaniards, and that Nova Albion of Sr. Francis Drake, let vsus take some view of the Spanish nauigation on these coasts.
Cortes the Conquerour of Mexico sent oFran. Vlloa apud Ramus. & Hack. vol.3.Francis de Vlloa with a fleet for discouerie, in the yeare 1539 from Acapulco, which came to Santa Cruz in California. They sailed ouer the gulfe, and came to the riuer of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, where they beheld, on both sides, a goodly Country. I am loth to hold on with them in their voyage, lest I saile from my scope, and leaue the offended Reader behinde me. Here they found in their course burning mountaines, which cast vp fire, ashes, and smoake in great quantitie. They encountered with a cruell storme, and being almost out of hope, they saw, as it were, a candle vponupon the shrowdes of the Trinitie (one of their shippes) which the Mariners said was Saint Elmo, and saluted it with their songs and prayers. This is the darkenesse of Popery, to worship a naturall light: yea that which hath little more then being, and is an imperfect Meteor, is with them more perfect then humane, and must participate in diuine worships. Without the gulfe of California they found store of great fish, which suffered themselues to bee taken by hand: also they saw weedes floting on the Sea, fifty leagues together, round, and full of gourdes, vnderunder them were store of fish, on them store of fowle: they grow in fifteene or twenty fadome depth. They caught with their dogges, a beast very fat, haired like a goat, otherwise resembling a deere: in this, neither, that it had foure dugs like vntounto a Cowe full of milke. But because they had little dealing with the Inhabitants, I leaue them, and will see what Fernando pFer. AlarchonAlarchon can shew vsus of his discovery. He was set forth by Antonio de Mendosa the Viceroy, in the yeare of our lord 1540, with two shippes. Hee came to the bottome of the Bay of California, and there found a mightie riuer, which ranne with such surious violence, that they could scarce saile against …. Heere leauing the shippes with some of his company, hee passed vp with some peeces of ordnance, and two boates: and so drawing the boates with hal…ers, they made vp the riuer called Buena Guia: they were incountered with the Indian Inhabitants, who forbade them landing, but Alarchon hurling his weapons downe, and pulling out certaine wares to giuegive them, appeased their fury, and caused them also to lay downe their weapons, and receiue of him some trifles, which he gaue them. Two leagues higher many Indians came and called to him: these were dec…d after a strange manner, some had painted their faces all ouer, some halfe way, others had visards on with the shape of faces…: they had holes in their nosthrils, whereat certaine pendants hung, others ware shelles, hauing their eares full of holes, with bones and shels hanging thereat. All of them ware a girdle about their waste whereunto was fastned a bunch of feathers which hung downe behinde like a taile. They carried with them bagges of Tabacco. Their bodies were traced with cole, their haire, cut before, hung down long behind. The women ware bunches of feathers before and behind them. There were foure men in womens apparell. Alarchon perceiued by signes, that the thing they most reuerenced, was the Sunne, and therefore signified vntounto them, that hee came from the Sunne; whereat they maruelled, and tooke curious view of him with greater reuerence then before; brought him aboundance of foode, first flinging vp part of eueryevery thing into the Aire, and after, turning to him to giuegive him the other part; offering in their Armes to carry him into their houses, and doing else whatsoeuer hee would hauehave them. And if any stranger came, they would goe and meet him, to cause him to lay downe his weapons, and if he would not, they would breake them in peeces. Hee gaue the chiefe of them small wares. They needed not pray them to help draw the boate vp the streame, eueryevery one laboured to get hold of the rope: otherwise it had beene impossible to hauehave gotten vp against the current. He caused Crosses to be made and giuen them, with instruction to honour them, which they did with extasie of blinde zeale, kissing them, and lifting them vp, eueryevery one comming for them till he had not paper and stickes enough for that purpose.
And as he passed further, hee met with one which vnderstood his interpreter, and asked of him many questions, to which he answered, that he was sent of the Sunne, which the other doubting, because the Sunne went in the skie, he said that at his going down and rising, he came neere the Earth, and there made him in that Land, and sent him hither to visit this Riuer and the people, and to charge them not to make further warres one vponupon another. But why saith the Indian did he send you no sooner? hee answered because before he was but a child. A long dialogue thus passed betwixt them, the issue whereof was that the Indian cried out, they would all receiue him for their Lord, seeing he was the childe of the Sunne, and came to doe them good. This vse did hee make of their superstitious obseruation of the Sunne, which they worshipped because hee made them warme (said they) and caused their croppe to grow, and therefore of all things which they eate, they cast a little vp into the aire to him. They warre one vponupon an other (a thing common to all sauages) for small occasions: the eldest and most valiant guided the army (for in some places they had no Lord;) and of those which they tooke in the warre, some they burned, and from some they plucked out the hearts, and eate them. Alarchon caused a Crosse to be made of timber, commanding his owne people to worship it, and leauing it with the Indians, with instructions eueryevery morning at the Sunne-rise to kneele before it. This they tooke with great deuotion, and would not suffer it to touch the ground, vntill they knew it by questioning, how deepe they should set it, with what composition of gesture to worship it, and the like curiosities of Paganish Christianitie. He was told, that this riuer was inhabited by three and twenty languages, that they married but one woman to one man, that maides before marriage conuersed not with men, nor talked with them, but kept at home and wrought: adultery was death: they burned the dead: widowes staied halfe a yeare or a whole yeare before they married againe. EueryEvery family had their seuerall governor, other Ruler they had none. The riuer vsed at some-times to ouerflow the bankes. These people told Alarchon, that in Cevola they had many blew stones, or turqueses, which they digged out of a rocke of stone, and when their Governors died, all their goods were buried with them: that they eate with napkins, many waiting at table: that they killed the Negro before mentioned, because he said he had many brethren, to whome they thought he would giuegive intelligence, and therefore killed him. An old man tolde him the names of two hundred Lords and people of those parts. This olde man had a son clothed in womans attire, of which sort they had foure: these served to the qSodomites.sodomitical lusts of all the vnmaried yongmen in the country, & may not thēselues hauehave to deale with any woman. They hauehave no reward for this their beaftial trade, but hauehave liberty to go to any house for their food: when any of them die, the first son that is borne after, succeeds in their nūber.
As for the more Northerly parts, both within Land, and the supposed Strait of Anian, with other things mentioned in Mappes, because I know no certaintie of them, I leaue them. The way by sea from these parts to the Philippinas, two of our owne Nation hauehave passed, whose Voyage, rLinschoten also in his third booke largely treateth of the course of these and other Nauigations.as also that exact Description of the same, by Franciscode Gualle, a Spanish Captaine and Pilot, Master Haklnit hath related, who hath in these, and other labours of like nature, deeply engaged himselfe for his Countries good, and of his Countri-men meriteth an euerlasting name, and to me (though knowne at this time, only by those portraitures of his industrious spirit) hath beene as Admirall, holding out the light vntounto me in these seas, and as diligent a guide by land, (which I willingly, yea dutifully, acknowledge) in a great part of this my long and wearisome Pilgrimage.