to the other side of the coast." And the Christians, seeing what the weather was like, since it was Novernber, stayed in these woods where they found water and firewood and some crabs and shellfish, and where little by little they began to die of cold and hunger.

Moreover, Pantoja, who was now in charge, treated them badly. Sotomayor, brother of Vasco Porcallo from the island of Cuba, who had sailed with the fleet as a Senior Officer of the Militia, and unable to bear it any longer, had a fight with Pantoja and dealt him a heavy blow that killed him on the spot. And so there were fewer and fewer of them. As the men died, the survivors cut and dried their flesh. The last one to die was Sotomayor, and Esquivelel cut and dried his flesh, surviving by eating it until the first of March, when an Indian who had fled there came to see if they had died and took Esquivel away with him. While Esquivel was held by this Indian, Figueroa talked to him and found out everything we have just related. Figueroa urged Esquivel to go with him so that they could both leave in the direction of Panuco. Esquivel refused, saying that he knew from the friars that they had already passed Panuco. So he remained there and Figueroa went to the coast, where he stayed.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

How He Told Esquivel's Story

Figueroa gave us this account based on what Esquivel had related to him, and so it went from mouth to mouth until it reached me. From it the fate of the entire fleet will be seen and learned, and what occurred to each of the men in particular. He further added that if Christians were to go through that area for some time, they might see Esquivel, since he knew that Esquivel had fled from the Indian with whom he was to another group called the Mariames who lived near there. And as I have just said, Esquivel and the Asturian wanted