Page:The principal navigations, voyages, traffiques and discoveries of the English nation 16.djvu/381

 [**P2 The typeset is very poor. Even resizing 75% did not always clarify the letters or punctuation which is then noted.]

countrey, that there haue dwelt giants in Peru, of whose statures they found in Porto viejo. and in the hauen of Truxillo, bones and iaws with teeth, which were three and fower fingers long.

In the yeere 1540. the captaine Ferdinando Alorchon went by the commandment of the Viceroy Don Armonio* de Mendoça with two ships to discouer the bottome of the gulfe Calfornia, and diuers other countries.

In this yeere 1540. Gonsaluo Pisarro went out of the citie of Quito to discouer the countrey of Camell or Cinamome, a thing of great fame in that countrey. He had with him two hundred Spanyards horsemen and foooemen, and three hundred Indians to carrie burthens. He went forward till he came to Guixos, which is the farthest place gouerned by the Ingas: where there happened a great earthquake with raine and lightning, which sunke 70. houses. They passed ouer cold and snowie hils, where they found many Indians frozen to death, maruelling much of the great snowe that they found vnder the Equinoctiall line. From hence they went to a prouince called Cuantico where they tarried two moneths because it rained continually.

And beyond they sawe the Cinamome trees, which be very great, the leaues thereof resembling bay leeues, both leaues, branches, rootes, and all tasting of Cinamome. The rootes haue the whole taste of Cinamome. But the best are certaine krops* like vnto Alcornoques or acornes, which are good merchandise.

It appeereth to be wilde Cinamome.* and there is much of it in the East Indies. and in the Islands, of Iaoa or Iaua.

From hence they went to the prouince and citie of Coca, where they rested fifty daies. From that place forwards they trauailed along by a riuers side being 60. leagues long, without finding of any bridge. nor yet any fourde to pass ouer to the other side.

They found one place of this riuer, where it had a fall of 200. fathoms deepe, where the water made such a noise, that it would make a man almost deafe to stand by it. And not far beneath this fall, they say they found a chanell of stone very smooth, of two hundred foote broad, and the riuer runneth by: and there they made a bridge to passe ouer on the other side, where they went to a countrey called Guema,