152 ovalle's historical relation of chile. 



but the ordinary ones, in which they conftantly fhow their generolity, are to ftrangers 

 and paflengers who pafs from Spain to the Indies, who moft of them are at a lofs till 

 they meet with fome patron, or friend, or countryman, to affift them ; and they would 

 often be reduced to great extremity, if this were not, as it is, a common inn for all 

 thofe people ; for in the college of our company alone, though it is not yet founded, 

 but lives upon alms, I faw when I was there, a cloth laid at the porters' chambers, 

 where every day they provided for, and fed about fifty or fixty paflengers, with bread 

 and flefli in abundance. The fame is done by other convents ; and the feculars, I 

 faw, gave them money and other neceflaries. This, as to the city of Panama, founded 

 in the year 1518, in which year the religious friars of St. Dominick and St. Francis 

 pafled from the ifland of Hifpaniola, and began to found convents in Terra Firma, 

 and the pearl coaft ; from whence thefe two holy orders purfued their miflion through 

 all the land, enlightening it with their doftrine and holy examples ; by which they 

 have made fuch a progrefs among the Indians, that the prefent flourifliing of the 

 faith is owing to them, to the great faving of the Indian fouls. The year 15x3, 

 Ferdinand Magellan made the difcovery of the coaft of Chile ; and the fame year 

 Hernando Cortes >yent from the point of St.Antonne la Havana to Corocha, which 

 is the firft point of Yutacan eaft, to begin the conqueft of the great empire of Mexico ; 

 of which, and the noble a6lions of that great man, it is better to be filent than to 

 touch upon them only by the by, as we fhould be forced to do ; this being not a 

 place to explain the ftate and grandeur of that mighty monarch Montefuma, who was 

 fovereignly obeyed in fo many and fuch great provinces. Who can exprefs in few 

 words all this, and the felicity that accompanied Cortes in all his undertakings, which 

 were fuch as they appeared poflible only after they were done, feeming otherwife fo 

 high and difficult, as to be inaceflible to the extrem-^ft boldnefs ? Indeed, it cannot be 

 denied, but that he was afiifted by heaven, whofe inftrument he was in planting the 

 Chriftian faith among thofe gentiles, and (hewing fuch reverence to the preachers of it, 

 as might ferve the Indians for an example ; a quality which will always give reputation 

 to princes, both before God and men. 



In the year 1528, the king fent a colony to the Rio de la Plata, having agreed with 

 the merchants of Seville for that purpofe. The city they founded was that of Buenos 

 Ayres, which is on the fide of that river, in that part of it where it grows narrow 

 from its large entrance at fea ; and the river there is not above nine leagues over. In 

 the year 1532, Cedro de Heredia of Madrid failed from Spain, and founded the city 

 of Carthagena, which is the firft Scala which the Spanifti galleons make coming 

 firom Spain for the Indies, to fetch filver. It was fo called, becaufe its port was like 

 that of Carthagena in Spain ; for the old name of the Indians was Calamari. He had 

 at firft an engagement with the Indians ; and though they ftiowed themfelves very 

 brave, yet he beat them, and founded the city, wl^ich is at prefent one of the beft of 

 the Indies, being walled with ftone, and fo ftrong, that we may name it as an impreg- 

 nable fortrefs. 



It is fituated in an ifland, divided from the continent by a fmall arm of the fea, 

 which ebbs and flows, and comes to the bog of Canapote : there is a bridge or caufe- 

 way there, that goes to the Terra Firma. The port is very fafe, and good fliips go 

 into it by two mouths or entrances, a greater and a lefs ; the great is fandy ; and the 

 year that I was there, they told me that it was almoft fhut up by the fand which a river 

 cafts up againft it ; and now they write me word, that it is quite filled up, k> that there 

 is no going in but by the lefler entrance, which makes it fo much the ftronger, and 

 it is defended by a good caftle j befides which the city is well garniflied with artillery, 



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