, during which time
they made three incursions into the country to some distance, finding it
every where ill-inhabited and difficultly penetrable, owing to similar
obstacles with those they had already encountered. From, the cacique
whom they had in custody, they were informed that Apalache was one of
the best towns in these parts, and that on going farther inland the land
was worse and more thinly peopled. He added, that at nine days journey
southwards there was a town called _Aute_ near the sea, inhabited by a
tribe in amity with him, who had plenty of provisions. Taking this
information into consideration, and especially as the Indians of
Apalache did them considerable injury by frequent assaults, and always
retreated to their fortresses in the marshes, the Spaniards determined
upon returning towards the sea. On the second day of their retrograde
march, they were attacked by the Indians while passing across a morass,
and several both men and horses were wounded, without being able to take
vengeance on their enemies, as they always fled into the water. These
Indians were of large stature and well made, very nimble, and went
entirely naked, being armed with bows as thick as a mans arm and twelve
spans long. They marched in this manner, under continual assaults, for
eight days, at the end of which period they came to the town of Aute,
where they got Indian corn, pompions, kidney-beans, and other
provisions. From this place the treasurer, Cabeza de Vaca, was sent with
a party to endeavour to find the sea; but came back in three days,
reporting that the sea was far off, and he had only been able to reach
some creeks which penetrated deep into the land. They had already
travelled two hundred and eighty leagues from the place at which they
first landed, in all which way they had seen neither mountain nor even
any thing which could be called a hill[132]. The men were become much
dejected and very sickly, and no longer able to travel so as to
endeavour to make their way back to where they left the ships; in which
miserable condition it was resolved to build some barks for the purpose
of making their way along shore in search of the ships. They accordingly
constructed five barks, each of them twenty cubits long, which they
caulked with the husks of palmetoes, making ropes of the manes and tails
of their horses, and sails of their shirts; but were hardly able to find
enough of stones to serve for ballast and anchors.

[Footnote