ant. When the other captains came with the caravels to St Domingo,
Caravajal came there by land under protection of a guard of rebels, the
chief of whom, Gamir, had been two days and two nights on board his ship.
Caravajal wrote to the rebels when they came to Bonao, and sent them
presents and provisions. And besides that the rebels would not treat
through any other person, they had unanimously declared that they would
have taken him for their captain, if there had been any occasion for such
a measure.

Notwithstanding of all this, considering that Caravajal was a gentleman of
prudence and discretion, who would not be guilty of doing any thing
contrary to his duty; that what had been reported of him might not be true,
and that every one of these arguments against him might admit of being
answered or explained, and the admiral being exceedingly desirous to put
an end to the distractions of the colony, he consulted with all the
principal people about him respecting Roldans letter, and what was best to
be done on this occasion. By their advice he sent Caravajal and Ballester
to treat. Roldan answered that since they had not brought with them the
Indians he had demanded, he would enter into no conference for an
accommodation. Caravajal so discreetly replied and used such convincing
arguments, that he influenced Roldan and three or four of the other
leaders to agree to wait upon the admiral and endeavour to come to an
agreement: But this being disliked by the rest, when Roldan and three
others were getting on horseback to go along with Caravajal to the admiral,
the rabble surrounded them, declaring they would not allow them to go, and
that if any agreement was to be made it should be drawn up in writing,
that all might know what was proposed to be done.

Some days afterwards Roldan, by consent of his men, wrote on the twentieth
of October to the admiral, laying the whole blame of the separation on the
lieutenant; and saying, as the admiral had not sent them any assurance or
security to come and give an account of themselves, they had resolved to
send him their demands in writing, which claimed a reward for what they
had hitherto done as will appear hereafter. Though their demands were
abundantly extravagant, yet Ballester wrote the next day to the admiral,
highly extolling Caravajals discourse; and saying that since it had failed
to dissuade those people from their wicked designs, nothing less would
prevail than granting the