Page:Letters of Cortes to Emperor Charles V - Vol 2.djvu/345

 whole of my journey have made inquiries about it and ascertained that it lies some eight or ten days' march from Trujillo, which would be between fifty and sixty leagues. There are such wonderful reports about it that they excite my admiration, for, even if two-thirds of them should be untrue, it would nevertheless exceed Mexico in wealth and equal it in the grandeur of its towns, the multitude of its population, and its political organisation. Being thus perplexed, I reflected that nothing is well done save what is guided by the hand of the Creator and Promoter of all things, so I had certain masses celebrated and made processions, offering other sacrifices and beseeching God to lead me in the direction most pleasing to Him.

For several days, I continued this, and still it seemed to me I should set aside every other consideration and go at once to remedy those evils. So I left some thirty-five horsemen and fifty foot-soldiers  Cortes Em- barks for Mexico in Trujillo under a cousin of mine, called Hernando de Saavedra, brother of that Juan de Avalos who was drowned coming to that place, who was to act as my lieutenant; and I gave him my instructions as to how he was to govern. Having likewise taken leave of the native lords who had come to see me, I embarked, with all my household servants, on board the said vessel, and, having sent orders to the people in Naco to go overland by the same road Francisco de las Casas had taken (that is to say along the south coast, and come out at the place where Pedro de Alvarado is settled ) as now the road was well known and safe, and they were in sufficient numbers to go where they chose, I, likewise, sent instructions to the town of Natividad as to what they were to do. Being already embarked, and about to set sail with the last of anchors weighed, the wind suddenly subsided and my