ained among these barbarians
by kind usage than severity, unless when indispensably necessary.

The prisoners taken on this occasion amounted to above a thousand men,
who were distributed as servants among the Spanish troops. Vitacucho
gave these men secret orders to fall upon and destroy the Spaniards
while at dinner, and appointed the seventh day after the engagement for
the execution of this new plot. On that day, while Vitacucho as usual
was at dinner along with Soto and the principal Spanish officers, he
started up on a sudden and gave a loud _whoop_ or war cry, which was the
appointed signal of attack, and laying hold of Soto gave him so violent
a blow with his fist as knocked him to the ground, and immediately fell
upon him endeavouring to kill him; but the other officers who were at
dinner killed Vitacucho immediately. On hearing the signal from the
cacique, all the other Indians attacked their masters, some with
fire-brands, others with the cooking kettles, pitchers, or whatever they
could get hold of, of which the fire-brands did most harm; but as the
Spaniards immediately seized their arms in their defence, all the
Indians were slain.

Four days after this fray, the troops marched to another town called
_Osachile_ after the name of its cacique. Coming to a river which could
not be forded, it was proposed to construct a bridge similar to that
employed on a former occasion; but on account of opposition from a body
of Indians on the farther bank it was necessary in the first place to
drive these away. For this purpose an hundred men armed with muskets and
cross-bows were ferried over on six rafts, and thirty horsemen got over
by swimming their horses. The Indians then fled, and the bridge was
constructed in the same manner as formerly described, over which all the
rest of the army passed. About two leagues after crossing the river, the
army came to some corn-fields with scattered houses, and were galled for
some time by the Indians, who lurked among the standing maize, whence
they discharged their arrows at the Spaniards: But they were soon put to
flight and several of them speared by the cavalry. On arriving at
Osachile they found the town abandoned, and the cacique of that place
could never be persuaded to make his appearance. Some Indians were made
prisoners on this march, who were more tractable than any they had
hitherto met with, and undertook to act as guides. It was now necessary
for the Spaniards to co