150 ' OVALLE S HISTORICAL RELATION OF CHILE. 



While they were wintering in this river, either idlenefs, or the great fufferings they 

 had undergone, and thofe which they feared, made them mutiny againft Ferdinand 

 Magellan. There were feme of his fhips that revolted ; but he with great boldnefs, 

 and no lefs art, made himfelf mailer of them, punifhing fome of the guilty, and par- 

 doning others ; and for Juan de Carthagena and his companion in rebellion, he fet 

 them alhore when he fet fail, leaving them a good provifion of bread and wine. It 

 was never known whether this was fufficient to fuflain them, till they fhould meet 

 with fome of thofe giants which had been with the fhips, and had been treated by Ma- 

 gellan, who perhaps received them. 



Magellan feeing the winter over, as he thought, fet fail the feventh of November, 

 which is when the fummer begins in thofe parts ; and having by land obferved what 

 he could of the ftraight, they paifed with great good fortune in twenty days, and then 

 fleering north, they coafled along Chile, which they left fomething at large, as 

 having no knowledge of that land, Peru being not yet difcovered. After this, they 

 came to the Philippine Iflands, in one of which this mofl courageous captain,' and 

 famous Portuguefe, Magellan, died by the hands of the natives, or to fay better, by 

 his own rafhnefs and over-boldnefs. 



Some years after, which was that of 1534, Simon of Alcazova, a Portuguefe gen- 

 tleman of the habit of St. Jago, and gentleman of the chamber of the King, a great 

 cofmographer, and one very expert in navigation, having been employed many years 

 for the crown of Caflile, made an agreement with the king to difcover and people two 

 hundred leagues from the place where Albagro*s government fhould end, which was 

 in Chile. He failed from St. Lucar on the 2ifl of September 1534, with five good 

 fhips, and two hundred and fifty men ; and without feeing land from the Gomera to 

 the flraight of Magellan, only having touched at cape Abre Ojos, and the Rio de 

 Gallegos, about twenty-five leagues from the flraight's mouth, he entered them on the 

 17th of January 1535, having endured fo much thirft, that the cats and dogs were 

 come to drink wine, and the people were ready to perifh. They found a great crofs 

 erefted by Magellan, and the wreck of the fhip which he lofl there. There appeared 

 about twenty Indians, who gave figns of much joy to fee the Spaniards. They fol- 

 lowed their courfe, keeping flill the right hand, as the fafefl ; but yet they had fo 

 furious a florm, that it carried away half their fails : it blew fo, that they thought the 

 Jhips would have been carried away through the air. They took fhelter into a port ; 

 and becaufe the feafon was fo far advanced, they perfuaded their general Alcazova to 

 go out of the llraights, which he did, and return to the port of Lions, or of Wolves, 

 which was a very good one. 



While they were wintering in thofe parts, they refolved to enter further into the 

 country, and make difcovery of thofe riches which the Indians told them were there ; 

 fo having celebrated mafs, they bleffed the banners, and the captains took a new oath 

 of fidelity and obedience ; and with this they fet out about 225 men, having fifty 

 arcabufes, feventy crofs-bows, four charges of powder and ball, which every one car- 

 ried with his bread, which was about twenty-fix pounds weight. Thus they marched 

 about fourteen leagues ; and there Alcazova, being a heavy man, could go no further, 

 which was his ruin ; he named a lieutenant, againfl whom the men mutinied ; for 

 having gone ninety leagues, and their provifion failing, they refolved to go back, as 

 they did, though they had met with a river full of fifh ; and that their guides told 

 them that a little further they fhould come to a great town, where there was a great 

 deal of gold ; for the inhabitants wore plates of it in their ears, and upon their arms : 

 but nothing could move them : and as one mifchief feldom coipes alone, they refolved 



12 to 



