Chap. IIL in the Neighbourhood of Darien. 141 
which received, as might be naturally expedled, the 
Envy of Pedrarias^ notv/ithftanding that Nunez had pro- 
mifed to marry his Daughter, and he had thereupon 
called, and in public treated, him as his Son. 
The Bufinefs in which he had employed him, was the 
building a Town, eftablifhing a Port, and from thence 
fitting out Ships upon the South-Seas \ all which, with 
incredible Labour and Fatigue, he at length accomplifli- 
ed, which added to the great Reputation he had before 
acquired. Pedrarias feeing this, and that mofl; People in 
his Government were inclined to remove, and to fettle in 
the Town built by Nunez de Balboa, as foon as it was 
finilhed, refolved no longer to delay the removing out 
of his way a Man, whofe Superiority became more and 
more confpicuous ; he fent for him therefore to Santa 
Marla : And Nunez de Balboa made no Difficulty of 
obeying his Order, either becaufe he did not fufpeft his ill 
Intentions towards him, or that, relying upon his own In- 
nocence, he thought it out of the Governor’s Power to 
hurt him. 
Upon his Arrival, however, Pedrarias commenced a 
freffi Profecution againft him on the fame Pretences for 
which he had fined him before ; and to thefe he added 
another very extraordinary Accufation, which was a trea- 
Ibnable Intention to ufurp the King’s Domain, founded 
upon nothing more than his having cut down, without 
the Governor’s Licence, fome Timber for eredting public 
Edifices j and upon this Charge he condemned him to 
fuffer Death, to the Amazement of the Colony and the 
Terror of all the Inhabitants. He perfifted however in 
his Defign, and cauled this unfortunate Gentleman to be 
publicly beheaded. Such was the Fate of Vafquez Nunez 
de Balboa, who, in the forty fecond Year of his Age, 
fuffered as a Tray tor, for having ferved his Prince with 
too much Zeal and Fidelity. The Royal Audience at 
Santo Domingo condemned this Adlion of Pedrarias, as a 
downright Murder ; but it does not appear that he was 
ever called to any Account for it ; but, on the contrary, 
was permitted to go on in the fame bale and barbarous 
Track for many Years together. This happened in the 
Year 1517, and in the third of Pedrarias*^ Government. 
12. When he had thus, at the Expence of Law and 
Juftice, freed himfelf from a Man whom he both hated 
and feared, Pedrarias refolved to fettle a new Colony at 
Panama j notwithftanding that, from the Heat and Moif- 
ture of the Country about it, it was very unwhol- 
Ibme ; but, as it ftood commodious for Trade, and was 
a Place very convenient for the Difcoveries then making, 
the Governor remained fixed in his Refolution, built a 
Palace there, and made it the Seat of his Government. 
Upon this others came thither to dwell, fo that by de- 
grees it grew a tolerable Place, and increafed in its In- 
habitants very fall, becaufe it was pretty well fortified, and 
becaufe the Harbour is very fpacious, where the Ships 
upon the Ebb are left. dry. The Circumference of the 
City is fmall, by Reafon of a Morafs that enclofes it on 
one Side, and the Damps that rife from it render the 
Place very unhealthy ; It ftretches out from Eaft to 
Weft, fo that when the Sun rifes there is no going along 
the Streets, becaufe there is no Shade ; and the Heat is 
fo offenfive, that it occafions many Diftempers. Though 
it has been feveral times propofed to remove it to fome 
better Place, it has not been done, on Account of the 
great Price the Houfes bear, and that the ancient Inha- 
bitants are dead •, and fuch as live there now are gene- 
rally Traders, and ftay there no longer than they can 
acquire enough to go fome where elfe. 
There is a River runs near the City, and the Diftridt is 
large, in which there are many Farms, and ftore of black 
Cattle, the Soil being proper for them •, feveral Sorts of 
S^anijlo Fruit have been planted, and there are of the 
Country very good, as Pine-apples, Plantain, Guayabas, 
befides others about the Fields. The Rivers afford 
Gold, which was found in plenty upon the firft building 
of the City, It is well fupplied with Provifions, being 
furniflied from both Seas. Neither Wheat nor Barley 
grow within its Diftrift, but there is much Maize or In- 
dian Corn carried from Spain and Peru. There are good 
Fifti in the Rivers, and in the Sea, though different from 
VoL, IL NuAtB. LXXIX. 
v/hat are found in Spain : Near the Hbufes alon'g fhe Coaft 
there are vaft quantities of Cockles,- by the Natives called 
Chucha ; and it is thought, that for the Sake of them* 
the Spaniards at firft built the City there, as being fame 
Supply in time of Wanr. In the Rivers of this Province,* 
there are vaft Numbers of Alligators, fo- large, that they 
are hideous to look at ; and one has been found in the 
River of St. George, that was twenty five Foot long : The 
Elefh of them, which the Spaniards were wont to- eat for 
want of better, when they were upon their Difcoveries, 
is bad and ill-fcented : The Creatures themfelves are 
fierce and frightful, and have devoured many Spaniards 
and Indians, and even Horfes, while croffing Rivers. 
There are few of the Nativeshn the Territories of this 
City, having been deftroyed in the Wars : The Trade 
there is extraordinary, rich Ships coming in continually 
from Peru, laden with Gold and Silver, 
The Commodities carried from Spain, on board the 
Fleets, are conveyed thither on numerous Teams kept 
for that purpofe ; a confiderable Part being fent up the 
River Chagre, within five Leagues of Panmna, which 
lies in between eight and nine Degrees N. Latitude. This 
Place being confiderable, tlie King ordered many Reli- 
gious Men to be fent over to convert the Indians, and 
made it a Bifhopric. Yet it is faid, that during the firft' 
twenty eight Years after the Conqueft of Peru, above 
forty thoufand Men were computed to have died there, 
of violent Diftempers. Soon after, Jaynes Albetez found- 
ed another Town at N ombre de Dios, which v/as alfo fa- 
mous for many Years, thofe two being noted for the 
Trade between the North and South Seas ; and here, as 
well as at Payyama, many thoufand Spaniards perifhed by 
the bad Air. 
In the Reign of King Philip II, to avoid the faid Mor-' 
tality, N ombre de Dios was quite abandoned, and the In- 
habitants removed to Porto Bello, where the Trade now 
continues. As foon as thefe two Towns were founded. 
Orders were taken for making a Road bet\veen them, be- 
ing the neareft between the two Seas ; though the Moun- 
tains were very uncooth, on which there v/ere then infi- 
nite Numbers of Lyons, Tygers, and other wild Beafts, 
and fuch a multitude of Monkies 'of feveral Sizes, as- 
deajffened their Ears with their Cries ; which, running up 
the Trees when any People paffed by, were wont to 
throw Stones at them, but the Spaniards kept them in- 
awe with their Crofs-bovts. 
1 3. It muft be allowed that this Pedrarias did not want 
Talents fuitable to his Office ; for he had Courage, Di- 
ligence, and a ftrong Defire to do great things ; and yet, 
notwithftanding all this, in the Compafs of eight or 
nine Years, he did little or nothing, which the Spaniards- 
attributed to the juft Judgment of God, for his cruel 
Ufage to Nunez de Balboa. There is no doubt that God 
is always juft; but perhaps we are not wife enough td 
diftinguifh his Judgments, and, therefore, it may be as- 
well to refer the want of Siiccefs in this Governor’s Ad- 
miniftration, to Caufes more manifeft, without excluding, 
however, the divine Juftice, which has certainly cennedted 
Mifery and Vice, and plagues the Negleft of moral 
Duties, by a continual Train of Misfortunes. The Truth 
of the Matter is, that his Vices defeated all his Schemes,, 
and rendered all his Undertakings abortive. Inftead of 
treating the Indian Caziques as- hiS' Predeceftbr Nunez had 
done, with Civility and Juftice, he behaved towards* 
them like an imperious Mafter, and yet he was not able 
to extort half the Quantity of Gold that had been free- 
ly beftowed on Balboa in Prefents. Fie granted Licences* 
to various Perfons to undertake Difcoveries, but on fuch 
hard Terms, and with fo many Reftrifoions, that they 
had no better Succefs than liimfelf ; and all their Endea- 
vours had no other Effedl than to wafte great Numbers’ 
of Men, and to bring, an Odium upon Expeditions int© 
the South-Seas. 
But what chiefly employed the Care of this Governor,, 
was reducing Urraca, Cazique of the Mountains, whofe 
Country was very rich in Gold and who, after the De- 
ceafe of Nunez, would have nothing to do with the Spa- 
niards,' prefuming, as he faid, that they could mean no 
good to others, who perfecuted and murdered each 
O o other. 
