more than two leagues along
the shore in search of a harbor; on the part towards which we moved
appeared very high mountains, and on that which we left extensive plains;
on the sea-coast there were a few small villages, whose inhabitants fled
as soon as they saw the sails: at length after proceeding two leagues we
found a port late in the evening. That night the Admiral resolved that
some of the men should land at break of day in order to confer with the
natives, and learn what sort of people they were; although it was
suspected, from the appearance of those who had fled at our approach,
that they were naked, like those whom the Admiral had seen in his former
voyage. That morning certain captains started out; one of them arrived at
the dinner hour, and brought away a boy of about fourteen years of age,
as it afterwards appeared, who said that he was one of the prisoners
taken by these people. The others divided themselves, and one party took
a little boy whom a man was leading by the hand, but who left him and
fled; this boy they sent on board immediately with some of our men;
others remained, and took certain women, natives of the island, together
with other women from among the captives who came of their own accord.
One captain of this last company, not knowing that any intelligence of
the people had been obtained, advanced farther into the island and lost
himself, with the six men who accompanied him: they could not find their
way back until after four days, when they lighted upon the sea-shore,
and following the line of coast returned to the fleet.[288-1] We had
already looked upon them as killed and eaten by the people that are
called Caribbees; for we could not account for their long absence in any
other way, since they had among them some pilots who by their knowledge
of the stars could navigate either to or from Spain, so that we imagined
that they could not lose themselves in so small a space. On this first
day of our landing several men and women came on the beach up to the
water's edge, and gazed at the ships in astonishment at so novel a sight;
and when a boat pushed on shore in order to speak with them, they cried
out, "tayno, tayno,"[288-2] which is as much as to say, "good, good," and
waited for the landing of the sailors, standing by the boat in such a
manner that they might escape when they pleased. The result was, that
none of the men could be persuaded to join us, and only two were taken by
force, who w