757 / 1060
BooK
IV.
Royal Commentaries.
The prifoners paid down their ready money,
as was
agreea;
an~
taking what was
in the King's Treafury with his ow!l Efiate;
fo~
he was a
v~ry n~h-m~n,
he amaf–
fed great
quantities
of Gold and Silver, all wJ:ich he
car~1ed
with him, and fo
embarked for
P11nama;
apd that
his
paffage might
not
be.mterrUpted, he b.rought
all his prifoners in their chains
to
the
Sea-hd~,
and freed
th~m ~~he w~s
gomg
?ff.
In his voyage he met
with
a
Ship
laden with
goo.ds?and
fp91ls,
whICh
Bachicao
had robbed at
Panama
the which he cook,
a
nd d1v1ded
to
h1mfelf and amonglt
his
Souldiers and
he~ring
that
Gonfalo
Pif
arro
had a Fleet of Ships at that
place,
he feared
tog~
thither, and
fo
failed_
to
Nic11.ragu~.
Pedro de Hinojofa
having
intel–
ligence of his going, fent
cwo
Ships
10
chafe
of
him, under the.
command. of
qap–
tain
{ohn
AlDN[o
Palomino
wich a hundred and twenty Mufquetlers : at his arnval
there he found that
Yerdugo
was landed; howfoever he took his
Ship,
but darfi
noc: adventure afboar ; becaufe the
Inhabitan~
of
Granada
and
Leon
denyed him
admittance; whereupon
Palw;ino
returned to
Panama
with
the
Ships
whi~h
he had
taken on the coafi
of
Nicdragu1t,
of
which he referved fuch as were ferviceable,
and burnt the refl:, and being arrived at
Panama,
he gave to
Hinojofa
an account
of all that had paifed. Thus was
Melfhior Verdugo
put out of
all
poffibility of do–
ing any farther feats againfl:
Pifarro
in
the Sea ot
Zur,
for he had loft
his
Ship,
and
could not buy another, for
Bachicao,
and his men, had taken them all.
Where–
fore confidering with himfelf what to
doe,
he imagined, that in cafe he went
by
way
of the North
Sea
to
Nornhre de Dios,
he might
be able co compafs fome
ex–
ploit in that
City;
for he conceived that
Pedro
de
Hinojofa
had few
people
io that
City,
and rhofe all fecure, and in no apprehenfion of furprize by an enemy : with
this fancy
he
built four Frigates, and £hipped a hundred fiout Souldiers upon them
in the Lake of
Nicaragu1t,
and paffed through
that
chanel
which runnes into
the
North Sea.
In
the River which
is
called
Chagre,
it was his fortune to take
a
Boat with certain
Negroes
who fpake good
Spanifh,
and
by
them he was informed
of all matters that had
paffed
in
Nombre
de
Dios,
both as
to
the Souldiers and Of–
ficers which were
quartered
there. And taking thofe
Negroes
for their Guides.,
· they
came
about midnight to the City, where being landed, they immediately
f~t
\)pon the Houfe where
Don Pedro de Cabre
and
Hernan Mexia,
with fome Soul–
diers
re lodged, who being
allarum'd
with the noife of the people, put them–
felv~
into a po!l:ure
to
defend themfelves. Whereupon
Yerdugo's
men fee fire ro
the
Houfe,
fo
that
the
Defendants perceiving the Aame about · their
Ears ,
were
forced to goe forth and combat with their Enemies by the
light
thereof: but they
being Robbers,
and more defirous of plunder and booty than ofbloud, rook their
heels
and fled,
and
by
help of a dark night fecured chemfelves within the high
Mountains which are near to the City : of all which
particulars
Advices being
carried
to
Pedro de
HinOJofa
then refiding at
Panama,
he fhewed high refentments,
and complained
thereof to Doltour
Ribera ,
who
was Governour of
Nomhre
de
Dios,
at that
time
refiding at
Panama,
before whom he accufed
YerdHgo
for ha–
ving emred into his
Government and
Jurifdittion without Title or Commiffion
from his
Superiour;
but had
by
authority onely from himfelf prefumed to impri–
fon feveral JuO:ices of the Peace, and forced chem and ochers to
pay
for their
ranfomes;
that he had committed many Piracies in the South and North Seas
a~d
at length in a hofrile manner had emred into
Nombre
d~
Dio.r:
all which being
highly aggravated
before Doltour
Ribera,
Pedro
de
Hinojofa
offered him aaifience
both in
perfon
and
with
his
forces ;
the which Doetour
Ribera
accepting, admini-
1}red
an Oath of
fidelity
to
Pedro Hinojofa
and his Captains to obey him as their
Cap.tain General
durin~
the
~ime
of chis all:ion, and not to doe any thing contrary
to
his
Command ;
whICh
bemg
agreed,
they forthwith marched from
Panama
to
Nombre de
D~os.
Melchior Yerdugo
having notice hereof, drew out his men into
tl:e
field, with fuch others of the
City
as had joined with him.
Hinojofa
irnme-
. d1ately attacked
them ,
and at the firO: charge feveral fell both on
one
fide and
the
ocher. But
when the Inhabitants of
.Nombre de Dios
faw
their own Governour
at the
~e
ad ofthe contrary
party,
they all retired
to
the
Mountain near the
Cicy.
r~rd11_~0
m.enwould have given a fiop
t-0
che flight of the Inhabitants; bur their
d1forder
bemgfuch tha
t r~ey
c<?uld not w_ithfian_d the (hock of their
Enemies,
they
berook
themfelves
to
rhe.rrFrigates,
wuh which they furp ·· ed a Ship in Port·
an.d
ar~ing
her with
theirCannon, they made many !hot o the Town ,
bu~
with
lmle or no damage,
by
reafon that the
Veffel
road at a difiance for want of
Water near
~he
thoar.
Verdugo
finding himfelf thus difappointed, and in no con-
A
a a a a
2.
ditio
.
73
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