Famous Discoverers and Explorers of America: Their Voyages, Battles, and Hardships in Traversing and Conquering the Unknown Territories of a New WorldJohnston, Charles H. L. (Charles Haven Ladd)
History
Famous Discoverers and Explorers of America: Their Voyages, Battles, and Hardships in Traversing and Conquering the Unknown Territories of a New World
Johnston, Charles H. L. (Charles Haven Ladd)
America -- Discovery and exploration; Explorers
Although the majority of the party were much dissatisfied with the
fact that they had not discovered gold, De Soto seemed to be satisfied
with the outlook. A few men were sent to the south in order to find
the ocean, and came back with the report that they had run upon a
magnificent harbor: the Bay of Pensacola. They had also seen the skulls
of horses on the beach, these being the remains of those killed by
the Spanish explorer, Narváez, who had fed the flesh to his men while
engaged in building boats for their departure from this country. De
Soto ordered a vessel to set sail for Cuba, stating that he had met
with great success, was much pleased with the outlook, and wished more
men and horses.
This was all very well for the provisional Governor, but still no
gold had been found, and the soldiers were discouraged and disgusted
with this lack of success. Eagerly they listened to the tales of two
Indian boys who undertook to guide them to a region where they would
find gold in abundance; the land of the Cofachiqui. It was towards the
northeast, said the lads, so the Spaniards set out in that direction,
expecting to find a city similar to Tumbez in Peru, and also El
Dorado, the golden man, sitting upon a throne of solid golden ingots.
Accordingly, they set out to cross the territory which is now the State
of Georgia. It was a pleasant, fruitful land, inhabited by a peaceable
and kindly people, who entertained them hospitably in their villages,
and furnished them generously with food. The Spaniards had no need of
resorting to their usual cruel methods, and the chiefs gave them guides
and porters so that they could more easily pass on.
But see how crafty and keen these old Indians were!
A certain chieftain offered to furnish the travelers with guides and
with porters. The Castilians eagerly accepted the offer, but so many
armed warriors assembled in order to go with them, that the Spaniards
suspected them of meditating treachery, and thus watched them very
closely. The Indians seemed to travel along peacefully enough; but,
when the village of Cofachiqui was reached, and the Spanish soldiers
had gone to sleep, their redskinned guides and porters fell upon the
unsuspecting natives, who lived there, and massacred all upon whom they
could lay their hands. This, indeed, had been a war-party in disguise,
which had taken a clever method of invading the territory of a tribe
which was hostile to them, and which heretofore they had been afraid to
attack. The affair took place at a distance of between thirty or forty
miles below the present city of Augusta, Georgia.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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