After the rebels were departed, the admiral took every possible care that the sick should be furnished with all that could conduce towards their recovery, and that the Indians might be civilly treated, to induce them to continue to bring provisions in exchange for our commodities. All these things were so well managed that the Christians soon recovered, and the Indians continued to supply us plentifully for some time. But they being an indolent race, who take little pains in sowing, while every one of our people consumed as much provisions in one day as would have sufficed an Indian for twenty, and besides having no longer any inclination for our commodities, they began to listen to the advice of the mutineers, since they saw so many of our men had revolted, and therefore did not bring such plenty of provisions as we needed. This brought us into great distress, as if it had been necessary to take these by force, the greatest part of us must have gone on shore armed, leaving the admiral on board in great danger, as he was still very ill of the gout; and if we waited till the Indians brought provisions of their own accord, we must live in great misery, or have paid them ten times the price we did at first, as they were sensible of the advantages our necessities gave them. But God, who never forsakes those who put their trust in him, inspired the admiral with a device by which we became amply provided. Knowing that in three days there was to be an eclipse of the moon in the early part of the night, he sent an Indian of Hispaniola who was on board, to call the principal Indians of that province to talk with him upon a matter which he said was of great importance to them. These Indians came accordingly to wait upon him on the day before the eclipse was to happen, and he desired the interpreter to tell them, That we were Christians who believed in the God of Heaven, who took care of the good and punished the wicked. That God seeing the rebellion of the Spaniards against his faithful servant, would not permit them to go over to Hispaniola, as had been done by Mendez and Fiesco, but had visited them with all those sufferings and dangers which were manifest to the whole island: And that God was angry with the Indians for being negligent in bringing provisions for our commodities, and had determined to punish them with pestilence and famine; and lest they might not believe his words, had appointed to give them a manifest token of his wrath that very night, that they might plainly know whence their punishment was derived. Wherefore the admiral desired them carefully to observe the moon that night when she arose, and they would see her angry and of a bloody hue, as a sign of the punishments which were to fall on them from God. Upon this the Indians were dismissed and sent away, some of them rather afraid and others looking upon it as an idle threat. But on observing the moon to rise in part obscured, and the obscurity increasing