nd told us our condition was at present
so lamentable, that he must beg of us to search the whole country round
to procure some kind of provisions or other. Pedro de Ircio happened to
be present when Cortes was thus soliciting us; and as he was always
ready with a mouthful of words, he supplicated Cortes to give him the
command of this foraging party. As far as regards myself, replied our
general, go, and may God be with you! But as I was well aware that Ircio
was a miserable pedestrian, and, instead of being any assistance to us,
would only be a troublesome companion, I secretly communicated what I
thought to Cortes and my friend Sandoval, and requested that he might
not be sent with us, as a person with splay feet as he had was least of
all able to make his way through bogs and marshes; added to which, he
was all talk, but seldom acted, and altogether unable to bear the
fatigues of a long march. Our general, accordingly, followed my advice,
and he countermanded the order he had given to Ircio.

I now set out with four soldiers and two guides. First we passed several
rivers of considerable depth, then crossed some marshes until we arrived
at a small village, whither most of the inhabitants of the deserted
township had fled. Here we had likewise the good fortune to find four
houses, completely filled with maise, also about thirty fowls, and a few
melons. We captured four Indians and three women, and we now celebrated
Easter right jollily. Above a thousand Mexicans whom Cortes had sent
after us arrived in the night, and we immediately loaded as much of the
maise on them as they could carry, with which they returned to our camp:
we at the same time sent above twenty fowls for Cortes and Sandoval,
besides the prisoners we had taken, and then placed a watch over these
storehouses in order that the inhabitants might not set fire to them
during the night, or carry off their contents. The following day we
continued our march, and discovered some more buildings full of maise,
fowls, and various kinds of vegetables. Here I made myself a little ink,
and I wrote a letter to our general on a small piece of drum skin,
requesting him to send me a detachment of Indian troops, as we had found
another storehouse full of provisions. The next day, accordingly, above
thirty Spaniards and 500 Indians arrived, and each took as heavy a load
of provisions as he could possibly carry. In this way God in his great
mercy again relieved us in the ut