Page:The principal navigations, voyages, traffiques and discoveries of the English nation 15.djvu/20

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they coulde not bee numbred nor resisted, and that they wore large coates, and hattes of crimson colour, which colour hee expressed, by shewing a piece of red wood, wherewith my tent was supported, and that they were called Orejones, and Epuremei, those that had slaine and rooted out so many of the ancient people, as there were leaues in the wood vpon all the trees, and had nowe made themselues Lords of all, euen to that mountaine foote called Curaa, sauing onely of two nations, the one called Awarawaqueri, and the other Cassipagotos, and that in the last battell fought betweene the Epuremei, and the Iwarawaqueri, his eldest sonne was chosen to carry to the aide of the Iwarawaqueri, a great troupe of the Orenoqueponi, and was there slaine with all his people and friendes, and that hee had now remayning but one sonne: and farther tolde mee that those Epuremei had built a great Towne called Macureguarai at the said mountaine foote, at the beginning of the great plaines of Guiana, which haue no ende: and that their houses haue many roomes, one ouer the other, and that therein the great King of the Orejones and Epuremei kept three thousande men to defend the borders against them, and withall dayly to inuade and slay them: but that of late yeeres since the Christians offered to inuade his territories, and those frontiers, they were all at peace, and traded one with another, sauing onely the Iwarawaqueri, and those other nations vpon the head of the riuer of Caroli, called Cassipagotos, which we afterwards discouered, each one holding the Spaniard for a common enemie.

After hee had answered thus farre, he desired leaue to depart, saying that hee had farre to goe, that hee was olde, and weake, and was euery day called for by death, which was also his owne phrase: I desired him to rest with vs that night, but I could not intreate him, but hee tolde mee that at my returne from the countrey aboue, hee would againe come to vs, and in the meane time prouide for vs the best he could, of all that his countrey yeelded: the same night hee returned to Orocotona his owne towne, so as hee went that day eight and twentie miles, the weather being very hot, the countrey being situate betweene foure and fiue degrees of the Equinoctial.

This Topiawari is helde for the prowdest, and wisest of all the Orenoqueponi, and so hee behaued