adolid, where the court was then held. Our agents
immediately waited on the bishop of Burgos, who was president of the
council of the Indies, expecting a favourable reception, and requested him
to transmit our letters and present them with all speed to the emperor,
who was then in Flanders. The bishop gave them a haughty and repulsive
answer, saying, That he would make a proper representation of our conduct,
for having thrown off our obedience to Velasquez. The arrival of Benito
Martinez, chaplain to the governor of Cuba, contributed to place our
affairs in an unfavourable light; and as Puertocarrero made a remonstrance
to the bishop, he caused him to be thrown into prison, on a frivolous
charge of having taken away with him a woman from Medellin to the Indies.
The bishop made a represention of our affairs to his majesty, stating
every thing in the most favourable light for Velasquez, and as much as he
possibly could against us, suppressing all mention of our letters and
present, and even appropriated a great part of the latter to his own use.
But our agents concerted matters with Martin Cortes, our generals father,
and the licentiate Nunez, his near relation, who had an office in the
royal council, and by means of some noblemen who were jealous of the
bishop and disgusted with his haughty demeanour, they procured duplicates
of all our letters to be transmitted to his majesty, together with
complaints of the partiality of the bishop. These letters got safe to his
majesty, with which he was well pleased; and for a long time his court was
full of the praises of Cortes and of us his soldiers. The emperor
conceived much displeasure against the bishop of Burgos for his conduct on
this occasion; who became quite furious against Cortes and the rest of us,
when he heard of the light in which our affairs had been seen at the court;
but about two years afterwards the bishop became quite crest-fallen, as he
was censured by the emperor, while we continued to be esteemed as loyal
subjects. On receiving these duplicates of our letters, the emperor was
pleased to say, That he would soon return to Spain, when he would attend
to our memorials, and would reward our faithful services.

Four days after the departure of our agents, a plot was discovered which
had been concerted among the enemies of Cortes, for seizing a vessel to
carry over intelligence to Velasquez of the departure of our agents, and
of the measures which had been taken by u