heir canoes were attacking
those left behind in the boat. The latter had been forced to fight man
to man, and had already lost the boat, which the Indians were towing off
behind their canoes. Four of the sailors had been wounded, and the
pilot, Alaminos, himself severely so in the throat. We, however,
courageously faced our enemy, went up to our middles in the water, and
soon compelled them, by dint of our swords, to jump out of the boat
again. Twenty-two of the enemy lay dead on the shore; three others, who
were slightly wounded, we took on board with us, but they died soon
after.

After this skirmish was ended, we questioned the soldier who had stood
sentinel as to what had become of his companion, Berrio. He related that
his comrade had left him with an axe in his hand, in order to go and cut
down a palm-tree, and that this was near the inlet where the Indians
first made their appearance. He had also heard him cry out in Spanish,
upon which he himself had immediately hastened to give us the
information. His companion, no doubt, had been murdered by the Indians.
Singular that this man should have lost his life here, he being the only
one who escaped without a wound at the battle of Potonchan. We made
every search for him, and followed the track of the Indians who had just
attacked us; this indeed led us to a palm-tree which had been recently
cut, around which were numerous foot-marks. We could, however, discover
no marks of blood; and concluded, therefore, that the Indians had
carried off the man alive. After we had fruitlessly searched for him in
every quarter for upwards of an hour, and repeatedly called out aloud to
him, without receiving any answer, we returned to our boat, and brought
the water on board. The joy of our men was as great as if we had brought
them new life; and one of the soldiers, from excessive thirst, leaped
from the vessel into the boat, seized one of the small casks, and poured
such an abundance of water into his body, that he instantaneously
swelled out and expired.

Having brought the water on board our vessels, hauled in our boats, we
hoisted our sails and stood direct for the Havannah. The day and
following night the weather was most beautiful as we passed the Martyr
Islands and sand-banks of the same name. We had only four fathoms water,
where the sea was deepest; our principal ship consequently struck
against the rocks and became very leaky, so that all hands were engaged
at the pumps,