g. Magellan,
anxious to carry out his plan, ordered forty of his men, whom he could
rely on for valor and military skill, to arm themselves, and passed
over to the island Mauthan in boats, for it was very near. The chief
of Subuth furnished him with some of his own people, to guide him
as to the topography of the island and the character of the country,
and, if it should be necessary, to help him in the battle. The king of
Mauthan, seeing the arrival of our men, led into the field some three
thousand of his people. Magellan drew up his own men and what artillery
he had, though his force was somewhat small, on the shore, and although
he saw that his own force was much inferior in numbers, and that his
opponents were a warlike race, and were equipped with lances and other
weapons, nevertheless thought it more advisable to face the enemy with
them, than to retreat, or to avail himself of the aid of the Subuth
islanders. Accordingly he exhorted his men to take courage, and not
to be alarmed at the superior force of the enemy; since it had often
been the case, as had recently happened in the island [peninsula]
of Yucatan, that two hundred Spaniards had routed two or even three
hundred thousand Indians. He said to the Subuth islanders, that he
had not brought them with him to fight, but to see the valour and
military prowess of his men. Then he attacked the Mauthan islanders,
and both sides fought boldly; but as the enemy surpassed our men
in number, and used longer lances, to the great damage of our men,
at last Magellan himself was thrust through and slain. [232] Although
the survivors did not consider themselves fairly beaten, yet, as they
had lost their leader, they retreated; but, as they retreated in good
order, the enemy did not venture to pursue them. The Spaniards then,
having lost their admiral, Magellan, and seven of their comrades,
returned to Subuth, where they chose as their new admiral John Serrano,
a man of no contemptible ability. He renewed the alliance with the
chief of Subuth, by making him additional presents, and undertook to
conquer the king of Mauthan. Magellan had been the owner of a slave,
a native of the Moluccas, whom he had formerly bought in Malacca;
and by means of this slave, who was able to speak Spanish fluently,
and of an interpreter of Subuth, who could speak the Moluccan language,
our men carried on their negotiations. This slave had taken part in
the fight with the Mauthan islanders, and h