Page:Letters of Cortes to Emperor Charles V - Vol 1.djvu/156

136 ; and from there the said Captain Grijalba dispatched one of the caravels to Diego Velasquez, with all that they had up till then obtained.

The caravel having departed for the Island of Fernandina where Diego Velasquez was, the Captain Grijalba went down the coast with the remaining caravels, cruising for a distance of about forty-five leagues without landing, or seeing anything except what could be seen from the sea. He then set out to return towards the Island of Fernandina, and never more did he see anything of the country worth mentioning, from which your Royal Highnesses may believe that all the accounts which have been made about this country cannot have been exact, because they knew nothing more of the secrets of it than what it has suited their purpose to write.

As soon as the said caravel, which the Captain Juan de Grijalba had dispatched from the Bay of San Juan, arrived, and Diego Velasquez saw the gold which it carried, and learned from Grijalba's letters about the stuffs and valuables which had been given in exchange, it seemed to him, according to information given him by those who arrived in the said caravel, that he had obtained little in proportion to what he expected. He declared that he had not even covered the cost he had incurred in the said armada, and he was vexed, and showed dissatisfaction at the little which Captain Grijalba had accomplished in this country.

In truth, Diego Velasquez had no reason to complain, because his outlays in the said armada were covered from certain casks, and tuns of wine, and other merchandise, and boxes of laced shirts, and beads, which he had sent with it. The wine was sold there to us at four dollars in gold, which are two thousand maravedis the aroba,