Indians did the same and lay near our men by the fire, snoring
horribly. When day dawned, our men requested them to return with
them, accompanied by their families to our ships. When the Indians
persisted in refusing to do so, and our men had also persisted
somewhat imperiously in their demands, the men went into the women's
chamber. The Spaniards supposed that they had gone to consult their
wives about this expedition. But they came out again as if to battle,
wrapped up from bead to foot in hideous skins, with their faces painted
in various colours, and with bows and arrows, all ready for fighting,
and appearing taller than ever. The Spaniards, thinking a skirmish was
likely to take place, fired a gun. Although nobody was hit, yet these
enormous giants, who just before seemed as though they were ready to
fight and conquer Jove himself, were so alarmed at the sound, that
they began to sue for peace. It was arranged that three men, leaving
the rest behind, should return with our men to the ships, and so they
started. But as our men not only could not run as fast as the giants,
but could not even run as fast as the giants could walk, two of the
three, seeing a wild ass grazing on a mountain at some distance,
as they were going along, ran off after it and so escaped. The third
was brought to the ships, but in a few days he died, having starved
himself after the Indian fashion through homesickness. And although
the admiral returned to that cottage, in order to make another of the
giants prisoner, and bring him to the emperor, as a novelty, no one was
found there, as all of them had removed elsewhere, and the cottage had
disappeared. Hence it is plain that this nation is a nomad race, and
although our men remained some time in that bay, as we shall presently
mention, they never again saw an Indian on that coast; nor did they
think that there was anything in that country that would make it worth
while to explore the inland districts any further. And though Magellan
was convinced that a longer stay there would be of no use, yet since
for some days the sea was very rough and the weather tempestuous, and
the land extended still further southward, so that the farther they
advanced, the colder they would find the country, their departure was
unavoidably put off from day to day, till the month of May arrived,
at which time the winter sets in with great severity in those parts,
so much so, that, though it was our summer-time, they ha