907 / 1070
BooK
VI.
Roy4/
Commentariei.
of five hundred and fevency thoufand Ducats; ali which they fent to
Pañama ;
fo
chat befides Merchandize , Peads,
J
ewels and other Cur_ioíicies , that they plun–
dered, chey had feized a1mofl: two millions in Gold and Silver onely, which bes
longed to che Prefidenc, and ocher Paífengers; who having noc che leaíl: fuípici–
on of Thieves or Robbers in thac way , carried pare of their Gold and Silver
with them, and the refl: they left at
Pan,4ma,
to
be brougfü after them to
Nom–
lm de Dios
·
at feven or eight turns.
For as
Gomara
fairh , there belonged above
three rnillions to the Prefident and his Company. Bue all this immenfe
Ri–
ches and Wealth was quickly confumed by che follies and debaucheries of thefe
young men ; .according to the Proverb,
w hat
wM
got upon the Devii's back._,
was
.ffrent upon hú be!ly.
And whac helped forward to chis Work, was the vanity of
Bermejo
and his Companions the
Piyarrifts;
who could not be contented with
á
le[s
Prey than the perfon of the Preíident
Gafca
himfelf; ·for fome defüed to take
a
ful!
revenge on him in lieu of the Pay and Reward he promiíed for the Cervices
rhey had done; and others, who were
Pifarrif/J,
were become
his
inveterare
E–
nemies on the fcore of che old quarrel; and ali cried out, thac they would make
Dice of his Bones and.Powder of bis Fleíh: for, faid they, he is fo fine and fub–
tile in ali his dealings, that certainly he cannot but make the beíl: and che fineíl:
Gun-powder in the World : But thefe men were deceived in 'their vain imagina–
tions ; for thpugh chey did not
fei~e
che i:erfon_ ofche Pre~dent, y~c their t'evenge
would have been more complete
m
fending h1m away w1chout h1s Gold and
Sil–
v-er, chan if chey had take,nhim alive, and facrificed him to their rage and fory. .
CH A P.
.
XII.
Of
the leud Praélices and Fo!Jies of the
~ontreras,
whereby
they lefl all the Trea/ure they had gained, together with
their Lives.
The diligente and good manage111e11t which
their Enem_ies u(ed to hring them to ¿ondign P~nifhment.
B
U T
che good fortune of
Licenfiado Gafca,
which had accompanied him in- all
che fucceíles before related, ana in the recovery of an Empire as greac as
Peru,
would noc now leav~ him expofed
to
the Attempcs of a leud and villanous forc of
People ; for Providence íl:ill continuing her procefüon and favour to him; fuffe–
red chefe wicked Wretches to be enfnared with their own Pride and Ignorance;
and chofe very men who had followed
Francifco
de
Car_vajal,
and had known and
learned his Difcipline·and Are in ~r , were
fo
clouded in their underíl:andings
and reafons , chat they raíhly preci¡ffiated thernfelves
inro
death and deílruél:ion.
For in che firíl: place, afcer they had taken
Pan,una,
and facked and plundered the
City, they feized upon many of che principal men thereof, amongíl: which were
the Biíhop and Treafurer to his Majeíly, as alfo
Martín
Ruy~
de M~rchena,
and che
Sheriffs of the City, and carried them away wich intent
to
hang them upan che
cornmon Gallows, which chey had certainly done to che
ful!
fatisfaéfion of
J ohn
de Bermejo,
had not
Hernanao. C<mtreras
given a ílop to che execurion, wich which
Bermejo,
being greatly enraged, told him plainly, thac lince he was pleafed to
¡ip–
pear in favour ofhis Enemies, to che high difcouf.lgemenc of his friends; ic would
be no wonder if his Enemies anocher day took cheir turn and hanged
up
him and
all his Aífociates.
.
Thefe words were a clear prediétion of what happened in a íhorc time afrer–
wards.
For
Hernand0 de Contrmu
cook no ocher fecuriry from the Citizens for
cheir quien behaviour towards him than ·their bare Oach, fwearing that chey
would be as true and faithfull to him, as if ali che afüons he had committed had
tended
to
che fervice of God and of che King, and
to
the benefit and advancage
of
the
Citizens. After which vain piece of confidence and folly, they- divided
tbeir
Forces , which in ali coníiíled of no more chan two hundred and fifty rnen ;
imo
tour
Squadrons, forty of which
were
rernaining with
Pedro
de
Contrmu,
to
T
e
t
t
t
-
guard