A.D. 



1595' 



The river of 

 Lagartos, or 

 Crocodiles. 



Two canoas 

 taken. 



Three Span- 

 yards escaped. 



THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



bushes, and thornes, here we beheld plaines of twenty 

 miles in length, the grasse short and greene, and in 

 divers parts groves of trees by themselves, as if they had 

 beene by all the arte and labour in the world so made of 

 purpose: and still as we rowed, the deere came downe 

 feeding by the waters side, as if they had beene used to a 

 keepers call. Upon this river there were great store of 

 fowle, and of many sorts : we saw in it divers sorts of 

 strange fishes, and of marvellous bignes : but for lagartos 

 it exceeded, for there were thousands of those ugly ser- 

 pents ; and the people call it for the abundance of them, 

 The river of Lagartos, in their language. I had a Negro 

 a very proper yoong fellow, who leaping out of the galley 

 to swim in the mouth of this river, was in all our sights 

 taken and devoured with one of those lagartos. In the 

 meane while our companies in the gaily thought we had 

 bene all lost, (for wee promised to returne before night) 

 and sent the Lions whelps shippes boat with captaine 

 Whiddon to follow us up the river; but the next day, 

 after we had rowed up and downe some fourescore miles, 

 we returned, and went on our way, up the great river ; 

 and when we were even at the last cast for want of 

 victuals, captaine Gifford being before the galley and the 

 rest of the boats, seeking out some place to land upon the 

 banks to make fire, espied foure canoas comming downe 

 the river ; & with no small joy caused his men to trie the 

 uttermost of their strengths, and after a while two of the 

 foure gave over, and ranne themselves ashore, every man 

 betaking himselfe to the fastnesse of the woods, the two 

 other lesser got away, while he landed to lay holde on 

 these ; and so turned into some by-creeke, we knew not 

 whither. Those canoas that were taken, were loaden with 

 bread, and were bound for Margarita in the West Indies, 

 which those Indians (called Arwacas) purposed to cary 

 thither for exchange: but in the lesser there were three 

 Spanyards, who having heard of the defeat of their 

 governour in Trinidad, and that we purposed to enter 

 Guiana, came away in those canoas : one of them was a 



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