least a thousand people, all naked. The lord had on a shirt and a pair
of gloves, given to him by the Admiral, and he was more delighted with
the gloves than with anything else. In his manner of eating, both as
regards the high-bred air and the peculiar cleanliness he clearly showed
his nobility. After he had eaten, he remained some time at table, and
they brought him certain herbs, with which he rubbed his hands. The
Admiral thought that this was done to make them soft, and they also gave
him water for his hands. After the meal he took the Admiral to the beach.
The Admiral then sent for a Turkish bow and a quiver of arrows, and took
a shot at a man of his company, who had been warned. The chief, who knew
nothing about arms, as they neither have them nor use them, thought this
a wonderful thing. He, however, began to talk of those of Caniba, whom
they call Caribes. They come to capture the natives, and have bows and
arrows without iron, of which there is no memory in any of these lands,
nor of steel, nor any other metal except gold and copper. Of copper the
Admiral had only seen very little. The Admiral said, by signs, that the
Sovereigns of Castile would order the Caribs to be destroyed, and that
all should be taken with their hands tied together. He ordered a lombard
and a hand-gun to be fired off, and seeing the effect caused by its force
and what the shots penetrated, the king was astonished. When his people
heard the explosion they all fell on the ground. They brought the Admiral
a large mask, which had pieces of gold for the eyes and ears and in other
parts, and this they gave, with other trinkets of gold that the same king
had put on the head and round the neck of the Admiral, and of other
Christians, to whom they also gave many pieces. The Admiral received much
pleasure and consolation from these things, which tempered the anxiety
and sorrow he felt at the loss of the ship. He knew our Lord had caused
the ship to stop here, that a settlement might be formed. "From this," he
says, "originated so many things that, in truth, the disaster was really
a piece of good fortune. For it is certain that, if I had not lost the
ship, I should have gone on without anchoring in this place, which is
within a great bay, having two or three reefs of rock. I should not have
left people in the country during this voyage, nor even if I had desired
to leave them, should I have been able to obtain so much information, nor
such supplies a