uce to Spain for the
bishop. Not one of the townships of that island had Velasquez set apart
for the emperor, although he was so greatly indebted to him.

Secondly. In the year 1517 one hundred and ten of us, under an officer
named Cordoba, had fitted out an armament at our own expense, with which
we had discovered and explored the coast of New Spain. The circumstances
relative to the expedition had been so represented to his majesty by the
bishop of Burgos, as if Velasquez had fitted out the armament at his own
expense, and had discovered the country himself, although he had had
nothing to do with it either one way or the other.

Thirdly. It was not until this expedition returned that Velasquez sent
out one of his nephews, named Juan Grijalva, with a small armament to
make further discoveries. Grijalva returned to Cuba with above 20,000
pesos' worth of gold, the greater part of which found its way into the
pocket of the bishop, and not a fraction of it was paid into the royal
treasury.

Fourthly. When Cortes, during the progress of the conquest of New Spain,
despatched Montejo and Puertocarrero, cousin to the earl of Medellin, to
Spain, with the sun of gold, the moon of silver, and the gold dust, with
various kinds of jewels and trinkets as a present to his majesty,
accompanied by despatches from Cortes and all the Conquistadores,
containing a full account of our transactions in the new world, the
bishop refused to give our agents an audience, and abused them in a most
shameful manner, calling them traitors and the agents of a traitor, and
took away from them the present we had destined for his majesty. He
suppressed our despatches to the emperor, and sent his majesty an
account which was the very opposite of ours, and had represented matters
in such a way as though everything came from his creature Diego
Velasquez. But he did not stop here; for he retained the greater part of
the valuable present himself, and when Puertocarrero begged permission
of the bishop to repair in person to his majesty in Flanders, he cast
him into prison, where he died.

Fifthly. The bishop had forbidden the two chief harbour-masters of
Seville to allow any vessels having on board troops, ammunition, or
other matters for Cortes, to leave that harbour.

Sixthly. The bishop, without authority from his majesty, had wished to
give the most important appointments to men who neither possessed the
requisite talents nor merited to fill such offi