Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 2).djvu/185

Rh beginning of 1540 he marched with Gonzalo Pi- zaiTO in his famous expedition for the conquest of the country of the Canelos, visited formerly by Diaz, and for the exploration of the country east of the Andes. Diaz rendered valuable services to Pizarro in this unfortunate expedition by his prac- tical knowledge of the Indian countries, as well as by his endurance of fatigues and hardships. Diaz, with only a handful of followers, went in search of the expedition of Francisco Orellana, who, after the provisions had given out, had been sent down the river Napo in search of supplies in the begin- ning of 1541, but, finding only a wilderness, had descended the Amazon, which he discovered to its mouth. Seeing the fruitlessness of his errand, Diaz returned in search of Pizarro, being continu- ally harassed by the Indians, and was the principal means of extricating the half-famished expedition from the wilderness and bringing it, although with heavy losses, to Peru. In 1544, when Gonzalo Pizarro rose in rebellion against Nuiiez de Vela, Diaz de Pineda, at that time in Lima, offered his services to the viceroy, and advised him to send an expedition to the interior. The viceroy sent him to Jauja at the head of a company of infantry and a force of cavalry, with his nephew. Vela Nufiez, the object being to prevent tiie junction of a force from Huanuco, under command of Pedro Puelles, with Pizarro's army in Cuzco. But scarcely had Diaz Pineda's force entered the Andes mountains when he (being Puelles's son-in-law) pretended that he was forced by his oiUcers to pronounce for Pi- zarro, and joined Puelles, young Vela Nufiez barely escaping. Gonzalo Pizarro sent Diaz Pi- neda in 1545, with Geronimo de Villegas, to Tru- jillo and Piura to recruit soldiers. Meanwhile the viceroy had been set at liberty by one of the judges, and, landing at Tumbez, gathered forces to march against Diaz Pineda, at that time in Piura, who had surprised and killed in Bracamoros Capt. Heredia, of the government forces. Diaz retreated from Piura, but surprised a part of the advancing forces at Chachayoyas and defeated them. On receipt of this news, the viceroy ad- vanced with the remainder of his forces upon Diaz and surprised him at Colliquen. Seeing his troops dispersed, Diaz sought refuge with Her- nando de Alvarado, where he perislied, being forced by hunger to eat poisonous plants. Garci- laso de la Vega, in his history of the conquest, re lates that the two officers, together with Geroni- mo Villegas, were killed by Indians.

DIAZ DE SOLIS, Juan, Spanish navigator, b. in Lebrija, Spain, in 1471; d. in South America in 1510 (or, accordmg to Barcia and Sala, in 1515). In 1506 he sailed from Cadiz in command of a carvel, together with Vicente Yanez Pinzon, and, follow- ing the course taken by Columbus from the island of Guanajos to discover new countries on the American continent, they entered the Gulf of Mexico, discovered the coast of Yucatan and the bay of Campeachy, which they called Gulf of the Nativity, and saw the mountain range of Curia. In 1507 they returned to Spain, and Diaz was ap- pointed by the king, together with Amerigo Ves- pucci and CoUado, member of a council of pilots, presided over by the king himself, at which it was resolved to continue the exploration of the Atlan- tic coast of South America, and Diaz was appointed commander, with the title of royal pilot. He left Seville in 1508 with two carvels, one commanded by Yanez Pinzon, and from the Cape Verde islands they made hmd at Cape St. Augustin and sailed southward as far as 40° S., recognizing the coast and landing at several points, taking possession in the name of the king of Spain, and erecting crosses (1509). Having quarrelled with Pinzon, he returned the same year to Spain. The king considered Diaz guilty, and sent him to prison. But afterward his innocence was recognized, he was awarded 34,000 maravedis indemnity, and several distinctions, and at the death of Vespucci received the title of chief pilot of the kingdom. He was considered the most expert mariner of that time. In 1515 he was again sent on an expedition to complete the discovery and take possession of South America, and on 8 Oct. of that year sailed from Lepe, Spain, with two ships. In this voyage he discovered many new points of the coast, en- tered Rio de Janeiro, and, sailing southward, dis- covered an island which he called La Plata: then taking a southwest course, he discovered land, and in 27° S. a bay, which he called Bahia de los Per- didos, passed Cape Corrientes, and visited the island of San Sebastian, which he called Lobos. He en- tered the port of Nuestra Seiiora de la Candelaria, 35° S., and again took possession of the country in the name of the king of Spain. Afterward he anchored in a broad river, which, believing it to be an arm of the ocean, he called " Sweet Sea," but, finding out that it was a river, called it Soils, which to-day is the river Plate. With one of his ships he ascended the river, and, seeing Indians on the shore, landed with a few sailors, desiring to capture some of the inhabitants and carry them to Spain as a present to the king. But he fell into an ambuscade, and, together with the whole boat crew, was killed in sight of his ship, roasted, and eaten. Diaz Soils was the first who by order of the king designed a marine chart of the coast of America (1500), and afterward examined all the charts designed by other mariners.

DIAZ MELGAREJO, Ruy, Spanish soldier, b. in Seville, Spain, at the beginning of the 16th century; d. about 1585. After six years of service in the Spanish army in Italy, he went with Gov. Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca to the Rio de la Plata, in the expedition that sailed on 1 Nov., 1540. He remained by Cabeza de Vaca until 24 April, 1544, when he was deposed through a conspiracy of the royal officers, and Capt. Martinez de Irala was appointed in his place. Diaz Melgarejo protested against these proceedings, and was subsequently put into prison, notwithstanding he was related to Irala. When Cabeza de Vaca sailed for Spain, Diaz was left at Asuncion, where he began to organize, in company of his relative Diego de Abreu, a party called the "loyalists. When, in 1547, Irala set out toward Peru, he left Fernando Mendoza acting as governor at Asuncion. Mendoza tried, in 1549, to have his authority confirmed, but was thwarted by the election of Abreu, through the exertions of Ruy Diaz. After Abreu had punished Mendoza with'death, for attempting to assassinate him, and to avoid Irala's indignation, he fled to the woods, where Diaz kept him company for seven years, until Abreu was killed by emissaries of Felipe Caceres, and Diaz was then imprisoned. Soon afterward Diaz escaped from prison, through the influence of his brother-in-law Irala, and set out with a companion for Brazil, but tiiey were caught by a tribe of Tupi Indians. His companion served as food for them, but Diaz was saved through the affection of an Indian woman, and flnally arrived at San Vicente, where he married. But he soon discovered an intimacy between his wife and a lover, and, killing them both, fled to Asuncion. He set out lor San Vicente with some Spaniards and a few Portuguese, among whom were the Goes brothers, who were the first to import cattle. They ar-