less than one hundred soldiers, and causing the enemy
to retreat ignominiously after a stay of not more than twenty-four
hours in front of the said town, Don Diego came at my orders to serve
on this occasion, leaning on a crutch--for he was not yet recovered
from a musket-ball that had passed through one thigh--and served as
commander of a galley. He found himself near the galleon "Nuestra
Senora de Guadalupe," which was grappled to another of the enemy;
and, with his aid, the latter was defeated.

Admiral Rodrigo de Guillestigui, commander of the galleon "San Miguel,"
grappled with another of the enemy; and although another ship attacked
him, and he received great damage from the artillery discharged upon
him, he refused to leave his prize until, after fighting with great
courage and valor, the galleon to which he was grappled took fire,
whereupon with great haste he ungrappled so that the fire should not
do him harm. The vessel that was burning was deserted by its men very
hastily, some of whom embarked in the lancha, while others jumped
into the water; and, the fire reaching the powder, the ship went down.

Captain Juan Bauptista de Molina, commander of the galleon "Nuestra
Senora de Guadalupe," was the first to grapple with a ship which,
according to the prisoners who were in the battle, was in Piru, where
it and another vessel sunk our almiranta. He fought as a good soldier
until the enemy surrendered after a hard fight. While a captain
and soldiers from our side were in the said vessel, that ship of
the enemy's that was coming down upon it afire, as the executor of
divine justice, set fire to this one, and it was burned. That ship
was burned because His [Divine] Majesty did not choose that there
should be more spoils from that victory than the memory of the just
punishment that He gave by His powerful hand.

Admiral Pedro de Heredia, commander of the galley "San Juan Baptista,"
grappled with the hostile almiranta; and after fighting valorously,
and having almost defeated it, because it was no longer serving its
artillery or musketry, the burning boat charged down upon the two
galleons and forced them to ungrapple for fear of the fire. Thereupon
their almiranta got away with some difficulty, because it had so
few men left to handle the sails. The men who escaped from the small
boat of the burning ship were taken aboard that vessel, so that they
had sufficient men to retreat; and our galleon could not return to
a