rawak
prisoners, and were therefore all the more ready to repel their
invasions. This was particularly noticeable later when the English and
French arrived and found them by no means so ferocious as the Spaniards
had reported. Possibly they knew these people to be enemies to their
foes, and were therefore all the more ready to be friendly as long as no
attempts were made to oppress them.

Hispaniola rose to some importance very quickly, and almost as quickly
declined. The settlers depopulated the island, and then complained of
the want of labourers. The gold-seekers went elsewhere, and Mexico and
the isthmus of Darien became of more importance. Some writers have
attempted to give the number of Indians exterminated in the early years
of the sixteenth century, but little reliance can be placed on their
statistics. Generally, they range from one to three millions, but it is
doubtful whether even the lowest figure is not too high. Yet, when we
read the statement of Columbus that crowds of people (in one place two
thousand) came forth to meet him, and his description of the large area
of cultivated land, as well as the broad and good roads, it is not
difficult to conceive that a million people lived in these great
islands.

With the destruction of the labourers down fell the plantations. Cattle
had been introduced and throve wonderfully; now they ran wild over the
islands, especially Hispaniola, until they became innumerable. On the
abandoned provision grounds of the Indians they found a virgin
pasturage. Hogs also took to the woods, and increased even faster than
the cattle. At first there were neither huntsmen nor carnivorous animals
to check this wonderful development. The once domesticated animals
recovered some of the powers and capacities of their wild ancestors,
and only required enemies to assist in bringing out other latent
characters. And these were not long wanting. Large and powerful hounds
had been imported from Spain to hunt the runaway Indians, and now that
their occupation was gone, they also took to the woods and savannahs.
Like their ancestors and cousins, the wolves, they combined into packs
and fought the cattle and hogs. Both hunters and hunted became stronger
and fiercer--the dogs learnt how best to attack, and their prey to
defend themselves. It was a struggle like that between the cannibals and
meal-eaters--nature's method of preserving the balance of life. This
equalisation no doubt would have been