THE DISCOVERY OF GUIANA 



great bottels of gourds, which were filled with beads of 

 golde curiously wrought, which those Orenoqueponi 

 thought had bene no other thing then his drinke or meat, 

 or graine for food, with which Martinez had liberty to 

 passe : and so in canoas hee fell dow^ne from the river of 

 Orenoque to Trinidad, and from thence to Margarita, 

 and also to Saint Juan de puerto rico, where remaining a 

 long time for passage into Spaine, he died. In the time 

 of his extreme sicknesse, and when he was without hope 

 of life, receiving the Sacrament at the hands of his Con- 

 fessor, he delivered these things, with the relation of his 

 travels, and also called for his calabazas or gourds of the 

 golde beads which he gave to the church and friers to 

 be prayed for. This Martinez was he that Christened 

 the city of Manoa by the name of El Dorado, and 

 as Berreo informed mee, upon this occasion : Those 

 Guianians, and also the borderers, and all other in that 

 tract which I have seene, are marvellous great drunkards ; 

 in which vice, I thinke no nation can compare with them : 

 and at the times of their solemne feasts, when the em- 

 perour carowseth with his captaines, tributaries, and 

 governours, the maner is thus : All those that pledge him 

 are first stripped naked, and their bodies anointed all 

 over with a kind of white balsamum (by them called 

 curca) of which there is great plenty, and yet very deare 

 amongst them, and it is of all other the most precious, 

 whereof wee have had good experience : when they are 

 anointed all over, certeine servants of the emperour, 

 having prepared golde made into fine powder, blow it 

 thorow hollow canes upon their naked bodies, untill they 

 be all shining from the foot to the head : and in this sort 

 they sit drinking by twenties, and hundreds, and continue 

 in drunkennesse sometimes sixe or seven dayes together. 

 The same is also confirmed by a letter written into Spaine, 

 which was intercepted, which M. Robert Duddeley tolde 

 me he had seene. Upon this sight, and for the abundance 

 of golde which he saw in the city, the images of golde in 

 their temples, the plates, armours, and shields of gold 



361 



A.D. 

 1595. 



The author of 

 the name of 

 El Dorado. 



The substance 

 of this report 

 is in the end 

 of the navi- 

 gation of the 

 great river of 

 Marannony 

 written by 

 Gofizalo Fer- 

 nando de 

 O vie do to car- 

 din all Bembo. 

 Ramusio. VoL 

 3.>/. 416. 



5/r Robert 

 Duddeley. 



