FERNANDO ALARCHON ad. 



1540. 



leaped into the river to swimme, and they came to 

 bring mee certaine gourdes full of Maiz, and of those 

 wrethes which I spake of before. I shewed unto them 

 Wheate and Beanes, and other seedes, to see whether 

 they had any of those kindes : but they shewed mee 

 that they had no knowledge of them, and wondred at 

 all of them, and by signes 1 came to understand that 

 the thing which they most esteemed and reverenced was 

 the Sunne : and I signified unto them that I came from ^ mtahle 

 the Sunne. Whereat they marveiled, and then they >*^^^"^- 

 began to beholde me from the toppe to the toe, and 

 shewed me more favour then they did before ; and when 

 I asked them for food, they brought me such abundance 

 that I was inforced twise to call for the boates to put 

 it into them, and from that time forward of all the things 

 which they brought me they flang up into the ayre one 

 part unto the Sunne, and afterward turned towards me to 

 give mee the other part : and so I was alwayes better 

 served and esteemed of them as well in drawing of the 

 boats up the river, as also in giving me food to eat : and 

 they shewed me so great love, that when I stayed they 

 would have carried us in their armes unto their houses : 

 and in no kind of thing they would breake my com- 

 mandement : and for my suretie, I willed them not to 

 carry any weapons in my sight : and they were so carefull 

 to doe so, that if any man came newly thither with them, 

 suddenly they would goe and meete him to cause him 

 to lay them downe farre from mee : and I shewed them 

 that I tooke great pleasure in their so doing : and to 

 some of the chiefe of them I gave certaine little napkins 

 and other trifles ; for if I should have given somewhat to 

 every one of them in particular, all the small wares in Swarmes of 

 New Spayne would not have sufficed. Sometimes it fell Z^^/'^'^- 

 out (such was the great love and good wil which they 

 shewed me) that if any Indians came thither by chance 

 with their weapons, and if any one being warned to leave 

 them behind him, if by negligence, or because he under- 

 stood them not at the first warning, he had not layd them 



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