WHOLE VOL. THE WEST INDIES— VAZQUEZ DE ESPINOSA 207 



one comes from Mexico City, 7 leagues from the Rio de Ayutla, 

 which is in the western part of this province. It contains many Indian 

 villages, all of them with large plantations or milpas of cacao groves. 

 They gather annatto, vanilla, and other fragrant and wholesome 

 fruits and flowers which they put into the chocolate. There is one 

 settlement of Spaniards in this province, named Gueguetlan, which 

 was established by Commander Don Pedro de Alvarado in the year 

 1524 when he subdued this province; it is the residence of the 

 Governor appointed by His Majesty in consultation with the Royal 

 Council of the Indies, for its satisfactory administration. 



582. The Province of the Zendales borders on that of Chiapas to 

 the WNW. It contains 13 Indian villages, has a hot climate and 

 fertile soil, yielding abundantly corn, wax, honey, wild cochineal ; 

 the country produces much swine, poultry, turkeys, cacao, quantities 

 of delicious fruit, and abundance of cotton, from which they weave 

 much cloth for their own clothing and for sale in other provinces. 

 It borders on the Province of Lacandon on one side, and on the 

 other, on that of the Zoques, toward Yucatan. This province is as 

 fertile and prolific as the others ; they produce much cotton cloth — 

 guaypiles, petticoats, tilmas (which are their cloaks) and the other 

 clothes they wear. Spanish traders come to these provinces to export 

 their products to others, and profit largely by it. 



583. The Province of the Quelenes lies ESE. of Chiapas, on the 

 Guatemala King's Highway. It contains 25 Indian villages, of which 

 Copanabastla is the most important ; this has a Dominican convent, 

 whose friars teach them Christian doctrine and administer the Holy 

 Sacraments ; it has a hot climate. On that side it borders on the 

 Province of Guatemala and that of Soconusco. The Indians all dress 

 like those in New Spain and Yucatan. Since there are very strange 

 and remarkable things in these provinces, which will arouse general 

 surprise, I shall describe them in the following chapters. 



Chapter III 



Of the Variety of Curious Animals and Birds To Be Found in the 

 District of This Diocese. 



584. The Rio de Chiapa runs N. and after traversing the Province 

 of Copanabastla and receiving the waters of many other streams, it 

 flows into the sea near Tabasco in the Diocese of Yucatan, becoming 

 an estuary. Inland, it contains animals of the size of large monkeys, 

 striped like tigers, with very long tails. Ordinarily they live under 

 water, and when Indians ford the stream, they wind themselves 



