WHOLE VOL. THE WEST INDIES VAZQUEZ DE ESPINOSA 647 



their enemy even when they have cut off his head with this, as if it 

 were a cutlass. From this Coyayagua to the Rio there are more 

 than 200 Chiriguanaes villages, covering the whole slope of the 

 Cordillera. 



1693. To the NE. the plains are covered with countless Indian tribes, 

 like the Chances, the Curiaguanos, the Capayjoros, the Tamocosies, the 

 Quivechicosies, and many others impossible to enumerate ; and over to 

 the E. are the Itatines, who are the typical Chiriguanaes. They border 

 on Brazil and on many other tribes, in whose territory there are 

 great navigable rivers. The first villages are lOO leagues from Santa 

 Cruz la Vieja, which was founded by Gen. Nuflo de Chaves in the 

 year 1561, during the term of Don Francisco de Toledo, Viceroy 

 of Peru. He came 200 leagues through warlike Indians from the 

 city of Asuncion in Paraguay with a large force of soldiers and 

 noblemen whom he had taken from there ; and he pacified and settled 

 the country. The first explorer of this country was a reprobate 

 soldier, who had to flee for his crimes ; he escaped from Peru and 

 settled down among these Indians. When they were distressed with 

 drought, he made a cross and went out with it in a procession, and 

 God sent them heavy rain, which was the means of the conversion 

 of those Indians ; from that time on they held the Holy Cross in 

 great veneration and had recourse to it for all their necessities and 

 trials, and so they all kept crosses in their houses ; that was why they 

 named the city Santa Cruz. But for the reason given and for others 

 brought up by Don Francisco de Alfaro, Circuit Judge of the Charcas, 

 who came to inspect it and the country adjacent, it was dismantled, 

 to the great distress of the poor residents, who were removed to a 

 settlement among the Chiquitos Indians ; this proved unsuitable, so 

 they were moved again and taken to San Lorenzo, 30 leagues from 

 the original site. They left all those plains full of cattle which today 

 have run wild and cover the fields for a distance of over 80 leagues, 

 up to the first Itatines village, thanks to the rapidity with which they 

 have multiplied. The junction of those large rivers has kept them 

 from progressing farther. These Indians profit by the cattle, keeping 

 them close to them and the poor Spaniards who lost them, far away ; 

 in fact, these latter were forcibly taken away to settle at San Fran- 

 cisco de Alfaro ; that was dismantled and most of the settlers perished, 

 through the fault of the administrators ; the few who were left, 

 rather than perish, returned to the city of San Lorenzo, where they 

 live at present. 



1694. There is a tree in this country like a peach, producing a 

 fruit the size of a plum which they call tarumaes ; they pickle it and 



