Chapter Index

× Proem 1. Which Tells When the Fleet Sailed, and of the Officers and People Who Went with It 2. How the Governor Came to the Port of Xagua and Brought a Pilot with Him 3. How We Arrived in Florida 4. How We Entered the Land 5. How the Governor Left the Ships 6. How We Entered Apalachee 7. What the Land is Like 8. How We Left Aute 9. How We Left the Bay of Horses 10. Of Our Skirmish with the Indians 11. What Happened to Lope de Oviedo with Some Indians 12. How the Indians Brought Us Food 13. How We Found Out about Other Christians 14. How Four Christians Departed 15. What Happened to Us in the Village of Misfortune 16. How Some Christians Left the Isle of Misfortune 17. How the Indians Came and Brought Andrés Dorantes and Castillo and Estebanico 18. How He Told Esquivel's Story 19. How the Indians Left Us 20. How We Escaped 21. How We Cured Some Sick People 22. How They Brought Other Sick People to Us the Following Day 23. How We Left after Having Eaten the Dogs 24. About the Customs of the Indians of That Land 25. How the Indians Are Skilled with a Weapon 26. About the Peoples and Languages 27. How We Moved On and Were Welcomed 28. About Another New Custom 29. How They Stole from One Another 30. How the Custom of Welcoming Us Changed 31. How We Followed the Corn Route 32. How They Gave Us Deer Hearts 33. How We Saw Traces of Christians 34. How I Sent for the Christians 35. How the Mayor Received Us Well the Night We Arrived 36. How We Had Them Build Churches in That Land 37. What Happened When I Wanted to Leave 38. What Happened to the Others Who Went to the Indies
TOC
La Relación - page 31

Since we found no firewood, we decided to enter the river which was behind the point one league away. We could not go in because the very strong current totally prevented us and carried us away from the shore despite our effort and determination. The north wind blowing from the land increased so much that it carried us out to sea and we could do nothing. Half a league out we took a sounding and found that we could not reach bottom with more than thirty fathoms. We did not know if the current was the reason we could not take a sounding. We sailed under those conditions for two days, struggling all the time to reach land. At the end of the two days, a little before sunrise, we saw many clouds of smoke along the coast. Struggling to reach them, we found ourselves in three fathoms of water. Since it was night, we did not dare to land. Having seen so many clouds of smoke, we believed that we could be placing ourselves in some sort of danger again, and that we would not be able to determine what to do because of the great darkness. Therefore we decided to wait until morning. At dawn each boat had lost sight of the others. I was in water thirty fathoms deep and, continuing on my way, I saw two boats at the hour of vespers. When I approached them, I saw that the first was the Governor's. He asked me what I thought we ought to do. I told him that he should join the boat ahead of us and that in no way should he lose sight of it and that together all three of our boats should proceed to wherever God should wish to take us. He responded that he could not do that because the boat was too far out to sea and he wanted to reach land. He said that if I wanted to follow suit, I should have the men in my boat row hard, since it was by the strength of arms that we could reach land. He was advised to do this by a captain named Pantoja, who was in his boat and who told him that, if he did not reach land that day, he would not reach it in six days. By that time we would die of starvation. When I saw his intentions, I took my oar and rowed

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