While we were thus looking about us we observed fifteen Indians approaching from the side of the mora.s.s, who, on coming up, touched the ground with their hands and kissed it. These were the chiefs of the township, and they begged of Cortes, in a half-crying tone of voice, not to set fire to their buildings. They had, they said, but recently settled in this spot, and had been compelled to fortify themselves thus strongly from fear of their enemies; whom, if I do not mistake, they termed Lacandones. These people had burnt down their two former towns which lay on the plain, had plundered them of all they possessed, and had killed numbers of their countrymen. On our further march we should pa.s.s over the ashes and ruins of their former habitations. These chiefs then related the cause of their enmity, and described their mode of warfare. Upon this Cortes inquired of them what had induced them to dress so large a quant.i.ty of turkeys and other fowls? To which the chiefs replied, that they again expected an attack from the Lacandones, who would be sure, if victorious, to carry off all their property and fowls; they had therefore determined to eat up all their provisions before the enemy arrived; but if they themselves proved victorious, they would march into the enemy's towns, plunder them in their turn, and so make up for their recent losses.

Cortes told them he was extremely sorry to hear of their wars, but that it was not in his power to render them any a.s.sistance at present, as he was obliged to continue his march. This tribe, to whom the two other large townships also belonged, through which we pa.s.sed on the following day, were termed the Mazotecs, a name which, in their language, denotes the land or the nation of the wild deer, and this was indeed a most appropriate appellation, as the reader will presently see.

From this place we took two guides with us, who led us over the ruins of the two townships above mentioned, and gave us some further account of the Spaniards whom we should find at a considerable distance further on.

CHAPTER CLXXVIII.

_We continue our march, and what further happened to us._

After we had quitted this fortified township, we came into an extensive open plain, on which, as far as the eye could reach, there was not a tree to be seen, and the heat was more excessive than we had ever experienced before. This plain abounded with wild deer, which were so little shy that we could easily catch them with our horses, and in a very short time we killed upwards of twenty. On questioning our guides how it came that these animals were neither afraid of our horses nor anything else, and so easily to be caught, they answered that the Mazotecs revered them as beings of a superior nature, because they appeared such to them from their external form, and their idols had strictly commanded the people not to kill or in any way to scare them.

One of Cortes' relatives, named Palacios Rubios, lost his horse in chasing these deer, for he galloped up and down the plain until the fat melted in its body, and the poor animal dropped down dead all of a sudden.[47]

It was not long before we came to the townships which had been destroyed, and certainly they presented a most miserable picture to the eye. On our further march, our scouts came up with two Indians who belonged to a town which lay in advance of us. These men were returning from the chase, and had killed a large lion and a number of iquanas,[48]

which resemble small serpents, and are excellent food. Our scouts then inquired of these Indians whether there was any township in the neighbourhood, to which they answered in the affirmative, and offered their services to conduct them thither. This place lay on an island in the fresh water, and could only be approached by means of canoes on the side we were advancing, which compelled us to march to the distance of two miles along the water until we came to a spot where the latter was sufficiently shallow for us to wade through, though even then it reached almost up to our arms. Only a few of the inhabitants had remained in the town, the rest having fled immediately on our approach, with all their property which they concealed among the reeds in the neighbourhood of their cultivated fields; but several of our men quartered themselves for the night among the maise plantations, feasted plentifully off the fruit, and took care to provision themselves for the next day's march.

Adjoining this township lay a fresh water lake of considerable extent, which abounded with large fish covered with sharp p.r.i.c.kles, and very much resembled the disgusting-looking and insipid-flavoured fish called the shad. By means of a few old cloaks and tattered nets which we found in the deserted habitations, we dragged the lake from one end to the other, and succeeded in taking above 1000 of these ugly fish. Among the fields we likewise captured a few of the inhabitants, who were requested by Dona Marina to guide us to the towns where the men with the beards and horses had settled. With this they readily complied, for they soon perceived it was not our intention to harm them in any way, and five of them immediately accompanied us. At first the road along which we marched was very broad, but this gradually became narrower as we approached a broad river or estuary, which was much frequented by canoes. Here the inhabitants ferried across to the opposite township of Tayasal, situated on an island, and of which the houses and temples were covered with white plaster, so that they could be seen to a vast distance. All the lesser townships in this neighbourhood were subject to the first mentioned.

As our road was becoming very narrow, and we found that it terminated in a small path, we resolved to encamp for the night in the vicinity of some elevated mountains. During the night-time Cortes despatched four companies along the footpaths which led to the estuary, in search of guides; and, indeed, they had the good fortune to capture ten Indians and two females, with two canoes laden with maise and salt. When these people were brought into the presence of Cortes, he spoke to them in the most affectionate terms, through Dona Marina, whom they informed that they were inhabitants of a township which lay on an island sixteen miles further on. Our general then despatched the lesser of the two canoes, with four of the Indians and two Spaniards, thither, in order to request the caziques to come with their canoes and ferry us over the water, and our men were to present them with some Spanish toys, and a.s.sure them that no harm should be done their persons.

The whole of the troops now marched forward until they arrived on the banks of the broad river, where, to our great joy, we found the caziques, besides several other distinguished personages waiting for us with five canoes, a supply of maise, and a number of fowls. Our general addressed the caziques very affectionately; and, after they had held some excellent discourses with him, he embarked with thirty crossbow-men in the canoes, and so proceeded with the chiefs to their town. When arrived there, they set before him the best of everything in the shape of provisions, and presented him with several of their cloaks and a small quant.i.ty of gold, though of inferior quality. According to their a.s.surances, there were men like ourselves in two different townships, namely, in Nito, which we called San Gil de Buena Vista, lying on the north coast, and in Naco, which lay in the interior of the country.

According to their account, these two towns were ten days' journey distant from each other. We were very much surprised that Oli should thus have divided his troops, we being at that moment ignorant of the existence of Buena Vista, founded by Avila.

The whole of our troops pa.s.sed the broad river in canoes, and we encamped for the night eight miles further on to wait for Cortes, who still continued at the township above mentioned. On returning to the main body, he ordered one of the horses, which had likewise been overheated in chasing the deer, to be left behind. While we were staying here, one of our negroes and two female slaves ran away. Even three Spaniards chose rather to stay here and run the risk of being murdered by the Indians than to undergo the fatigues of our march for another three days. I myself was far from well; the excessive heat of the sun had affected my head, and I scarcely knew how to bear myself. But even this distressing heat was more welcome to us than the torrents of rain which began to fall, and lasted, without intermission, for three days; nevertheless, we were obliged to continue our march, as we had not a morsel of food left. In the s.p.a.ce of two days we arrived at some small hills, which were completely covered with stones, and these so sharp that they cut like razors. Our men gave themselves considerable trouble in searching for some other road in order to avoid these stones, but all their endeavours were fruitless, though they went to a distance of above four miles. This part of our march was most dangerous for the horses; for, as it still continued to rain, they constantly stumbled, and were sure to cut their knees, and even their bellies in the most dreadful manner on the pointed stones; but the descent was still more difficult, eight of the horses being killed and many others shockingly lacerated, and one of the soldiers named Palacios Rubios, a relative of Cortes, had the misfortune to break his leg. We could not, therefore, feel sufficiently thankful to the Almighty when at last we got clear of this mountain of flint, as we ever after termed it.

As we had now advanced within a short distance of the township Taica, we were not a little rejoiced at the thoughts that we should again get some food. In the neighbourhood of this place we came to a river which poured down over the precipices of a very high mountain, and was so much swollen by the rain of the three last days that it rolled down in immense volumes, and the roaring noise of the flood, as it dashed from one precipice to another, could be distinctly heard at the distance of eight miles. There was no other possibility of pa.s.sing this turbulent river but by throwing a bridge across from one rock to the other. We accordingly set to work with the utmost diligence, and in the s.p.a.ce of three days we constructed a bridge of the largest trees, and the whole of us pa.s.sed safely to the other side of these cataracts. While we were engaged in building this bridge, the Indians of Taica had gained sufficient time to run off and conceal all their provisions. When, therefore, we arrived in this township and met not a single inhabitant, nor found the smallest particle of food to still our hunger, we stared at each other in dismay when we considered our dreadful position. The hope of soon obtaining food had alone inspired us with sufficient courage and strength to undertake the construction of this bridge. For myself I do not hesitate to acknowledge that I never, in the whole course of my life, felt so distressed in mind as on this occasion, when I found that I could neither procure food for my men nor myself. Added to all this, we had overheated ourselves by marching about the neighbourhood in a burning sun for a couple of hours in search of the inhabitants. It happened to be the eve of Easter day, and I shall never forget this day as long as I live; and the reader can easily imagine what a pleasant Easter we spent without a morsel of food. We should have considered ourselves blessed and happy if we had only had a handful of maise.

In this great distress Cortes despatched all his servants and grooms with our guides to traverse the hills in search of maise plantations. On the first day of Easter they indeed returned with some maise, but all they had was scarcely a bushel, and what was this among so many mouths!

Cortes, seeing that our distress was each moment increasing, ordered myself and several other soldiers, mostly of those who had settled in Guacasualco, into his presence, and told us our condition was at present so lamentable, that he must beg of us to search the whole country round to procure some kind of provisions or other. Pedro de Ircio happened to be present when Cortes was thus soliciting us; and as he was always ready with a mouthful of words, he supplicated Cortes to give him the command of this foraging party. As far as regards myself, replied our general, go, and may G.o.d be with you! But as I was well aware that Ircio was a miserable pedestrian, and, instead of being any a.s.sistance to us, would only be a troublesome companion, I secretly communicated what I thought to Cortes and my friend Sandoval, and requested that he might not be sent with us, as a person with splay feet as he had was least of all able to make his way through bogs and marshes; added to which, he was all talk, but seldom acted, and altogether unable to bear the fatigues of a long march. Our general, accordingly, followed my advice, and he countermanded the order he had given to Ircio.

I now set out with four soldiers and two guides. First we pa.s.sed several rivers of considerable depth, then crossed some marshes until we arrived at a small village, whither most of the inhabitants of the deserted township had fled. Here we had likewise the good fortune to find four houses, completely filled with maise, also about thirty fowls, and a few melons. We captured four Indians and three women, and we now celebrated Easter right jollily. Above a thousand Mexicans whom Cortes had sent after us arrived in the night, and we immediately loaded as much of the maise on them as they could carry, with which they returned to our camp: we at the same time sent above twenty fowls for Cortes and Sandoval, besides the prisoners we had taken, and then placed a watch over these storehouses in order that the inhabitants might not set fire to them during the night, or carry off their contents. The following day we continued our march, and discovered some more buildings full of maise, fowls, and various kinds of vegetables. Here I made myself a little ink, and I wrote a letter to our general on a small piece of drum skin, requesting him to send me a detachment of Indian troops, as we had found another storehouse full of provisions. The next day, accordingly, above thirty Spaniards and 500 Indians arrived, and each took as heavy a load of provisions as he could possibly carry. In this way G.o.d in his great mercy again relieved us in the utmost distress, and we halted five days in Taica to rest from our fatigues.

The bridges which we threw across the numerous rivers we pa.s.sed on our march had been so strongly put together that several of them were still to be seen for many years after; and subsequently, when all these provinces were subjected to the Spanish crown, our countrymen regarded them in astonishment, and exclaimed, _These are the bridges of Cortes!_ in the same way as people say, _These are the columns of Hercules!_

After marching forward for two more days, we arrived at a township called Tania, which was also deserted by its inhabitants, though we found some maise and other provisions, but not in sufficient quant.i.ty for our troops. On thoroughly exploring the country round about, we discovered that we were now completely surrounded by rivers and small streams; the guides we had brought with us ran away in the night from the soldiers who had charge of them. These men had but recently arrived from New Spain, and it appears had been overtaken by sleep; our general, on receiving the first information of their neglect of duty, was going to have them severely punished; however, he was at length induced to pardon them, and he sent out another party to explore our route; but as this neighbourhood abounded with rivers, and it continued to rain very fast, almost the whole of the country was inundated; besides which, we could have no hopes of meeting with any of the inhabitants. Thus situated, in the midst of the waters, we scarcely knew which way to turn, and our distress and alarm were each moment increasing. Cortes himself appeared considerably disheartened, and said, with a good deal of ill humour, to Ircio, and other officers who came with him from Mexico: "I should like to know which of you will volunteer to go out in search of some Indian guide, or to discover a way out of these waters; for it is shameful to leave everything to the veterans, who have accompanied us from Guacasualco!"

After this reproach, Ircio, with some of his friends and acquaintances, offered himself, and he actually marched out for this purpose.

Marmolejo, a person of distinction, likewise went out with six men; so also Santacruz Burgales, with a like number. Each of these three small detachments went off in a different direction, and they wandered about for three days, but returned with the disheartening news, that wherever they came there was nothing but water to be seen. Cortes was ready to burst with vexation when they told him this, and he desired Sandoval to go and speak with me, and request me, in his name, to try if I could not discover some road, to rescue the army from its present perilous position. All this he said in an affectionate and begging tone of voice, as he very well knew that I was by no means in good health: and indeed I was suffering with a bad fever, for which reason I had refused to accompany my intimate friend Marmolejo, to whom I said: "You expect me to do everything; let others bestir themselves as well!" First I refused Sandoval also, but he came a second time to my hut, and begged very hard of me to comply with our general's request, who had said, that next to G.o.d he could only expect a.s.sistance from me at this juncture. Though I felt very ill, yet my honour would not allow me to refuse any longer, and I desired that Hernando de Aguilar and a certain Hinojosa might accompany me, both of whom were men I well knew could bear any fatigues.

We three then set out from our camp, and followed the course of a rivulet to some considerable distance, until we came in view of a hill lying on the opposite side of the water, and on which we observed several branches of trees that had been stuck in the ground as if to serve for some signal. We now marched in this direction for upwards of an hour, and after finding our way out between the rivers, we came to some small huts, which had a short time previously been deserted by their owners. Continuing our course in this direction, we observed at some distance from us, on the slope of a hill, some maise plantations lying about an isolated dwelling, in which we distinctly heard the sound of human voices. As the sun was by this time nearly gone down, we concealed ourselves among the bushes until late in the night, when we thought the inmates of the house were all fast asleep. We then moved forward in the utmost silence up to this habitation, broke suddenly into it, and captured three Indians, an old woman, and two other young females, who were uncommonly pretty. We only found two fowls and a small quant.i.ty of maise, with which, and the whole of these Indians, we returned highly rejoiced to our encampment. Sandoval had kept a look out for us until late in the evening, and he was the first to observe us at a distance, on our return. He could scarcely contain himself for joy when he recognized us, and he hastened to inform Cortes, to whom no news could be more acceptable than the fact of our safe return. "Indeed,"

said Sandoval, on this occasion, to Pedro de Ircio, "Bernal Diaz del Castillo remarked well some time ago, on going out in search of provisions, that this required men of great activity, and not people who thought of nothing else on the road but of their pretty stories of the count of Urena and his son Don Pedro Giron!" for this was the constant theme of friend Ircio. "He had good reasons for saying so, and you need not reproach him, for speaking in your dispraise to our general and myself."

These words caused a general laughter at Ircio's expense, and Sandoval purposely procured me this little triumph, because he knew I owed the former a grudge.

When I came into the presence of Cortes, he thanked me in the kindest terms, and said: "I have never found you at a loss in time of need!"

But why should I repeat these flattering sentences? for at most they are mere empty sounds, and little profit to any one: at least, I gained nothing by these fine words, excepting that when this perilous expedition was subsequently the topic of conversation in Mexico, my name was always mentioned with praise.

Cortes, on questioning the Indians respecting the country, learnt from them, that if we followed the course of a certain rivulet we should arrive, after two days' journey, in a township called Oculizti, which consisted of upwards of two hundred houses, but had been deserted a few days previously by its inhabitants. We accordingly marched down the rivulet, and arrived at several large huts belonging to Indian merchants, who rested here on their journeys. We pa.s.sed the night in these dwellings, and the following day we continued our march along the same stream for two miles, when we came to a good road, which brought us before sunset to Coliste, where we found maise and plenty of vegetables, and, suspended in a temple, an old Spanish cap and a shoe, which had been dedicated to the idols there. Several of our men searched some hollows in the neighbourhood, and soon discovered two aged Indians and four women, who were immediately brought into the presence of our general. On being questioned by Dona Marina about the town where the Spaniards had settled, they answered, that it lay on the sea coast, about five days' journey from our camp, but that on our road thither we should not see a single Indian township.

On this information, Cortes instantly despatched Sandoval, with six men on foot, to the sea coast, in the direction the Indians had pointed out, in order to learn, if possible, what number of Spanish troops Christobal de Oli had under his command, for at that time we were still ignorant of what had taken place there.

Our general's plan was to fall upon Oli during the night, when he least dreamt of our approach, and to take him prisoner, with all his troops.

Sandoval took three Indian guides with him from Oculizti, and set out on his journey. When he had arrived on the north coast, and was marching along the beach, he espied a canoe making for the land with sails and paddles. He therefore hid himself behind a rising ground until the vessel should have run ash.o.r.e. This canoe belonged to some Indian merchants, was laden with salt and maise, and was destined for the large river which flows into the Golfo Dulce.

In the night time Sandoval sallied forth from his hiding place, captured all the crew, then stepped into the canoe with two of his companions and the three guides, and desired the Indian merchants to row him along the coast, while the four other Spaniards followed by land. Sandoval was sure the great river could not be far distant, and in this he was not deceived, for he entered it soon after, and he had the good fortune to come up with four Spaniards of the new town founded by Gil Gonsalez de Avila. These men had just arrived in a canoe from an excursion in search of provisions, of which there was an uncommon scarcity in the colony.

The whole of the inhabitants were suffering from ill health, and durst not venture into the neighbourhood of the town to search for provisions, as they were at enmity with the Indians, who had already killed ten of their number since Avila's departure for Mexico.

When Sandoval was approaching in the canoe, he found these Spaniards busily occupied in gathering cocoa nuts. Two of them, who had climbed up the tree, were the first to observe the strange vessel, and they immediately called out to their companions below. The whole of them were so astonished and alarmed, that they scarcely knew whether they should run away or stop where they were; but on Sandoval coming up, and addressing them in a friendly manner, they took courage, and related to him the whole history of the foundation of their colony, the misfortune which befel the fleet of Las Casas, his and Avila's capture by Oli, the execution of the latter at Naco, and the subsequent departure of the two first-mentioned officers for Mexico: then gave him a full description of the miserable condition of the colony mentioned, the number of the inhabitants, and their great suffering from want of food; and stated, that a few days previously they had hung the commandant of the town, Armenta, because he had refused to grant them permission to return to Cuba.

Sandoval considered it best to take these men along with him to Cortes, in order that our approach might not be made known to the colony. One of Sandoval's soldiers, named Alonso Ortiz, a native of the town San Pedro, begged that he might be allowed to start an hour before the rest, to gain a handsome reward, by being the first to announce this joyful news to our troops. This favour Sandoval readily granted him, and certainly no news could have been more welcome to us all; for we now fully believed that all our fatigues and perils were at an end, and we never thought for a moment that we should have to suffer even greater hardships than we had hitherto. Alonso de Ortiz was well rewarded for the haste he had made, for Cortes presented him with a fine gray horse, which we generally termed the Moor's head; besides this, every one of us gave him some other little presents. Shortly after, Sandoval himself arrived, with the other Spaniards, who told Cortes what I have above mentioned. They also informed him that two miles further on there was a harbour, in which a vessel was being fitted out, to convey the colonists to Cuba. The commandant Armenta, they added, had obstinately refused to allow them to depart; for which reason, and because he had scourged a Spanish priest, who had caused an insurrection in the town, the inhabitants rebelled against him, hung him, and appointed a certain Antonio Nieto commandant in his stead. In the meantime, at the town of San Gil de Buena Vista, there was nothing but lamentation and grief, when the Spaniards, who had been sent out in quest of provisions, did not return in the evening, and every one thought they must either have been ma.s.sacred by the Indians or devoured by the wild beasts. One of the Spaniards who had returned with Sandoval was a married man, and his wife broke out into loud lamentations at his supposed death. The whole of the inhabitants went to the church, and a funeral sermon was preached by the priest Velasquez, and prayers were offered up for the souls of the dead.

Cortes now marched, with the whole of his troops, in the direction of the sea coast, the distance to which was full twenty-four miles, but our further progress was r.e.t.a.r.ded for a considerable time by a deep arm of the sea, where we were obliged to wait until low water before we could pa.s.s over, partly swimming and partly wading across, which detained us until noon. In this way we at length arrived at the broad river of the Golfo Dulce, which Cortes and six soldiers were the first to cross, in order to reach the new town. Two canoes, one which Sandoval had captured on the coast, and the other belonging to the colonists, were fastened together, in which our general, with six men, and a few of his servants, embarked, and was ferried across the water. Upon this a few of the horses were swum across, the grooms holding the animals by the bridles, which were kept as short as possible, for fear of the former upsetting the canoes.

Cortes left strict commands that no one was to pa.s.s the river until further orders, which he would send in writing. The pa.s.sage across this rapid stream was indeed excessively dangerous, and Cortes himself regretted that he had thus risked his life unnecessarily.

CHAPTER CLXXIX.

_How Cortes entered the town founded by Gil Gonsalez de Avila; the great joy of the inhabitants at his arrival, and what he further did there._

The town of Buena Vista, which Avila had founded in this neighbourhood, lay about eight miles from the broad river of the Golfo Dulce, near to the sea sh.o.r.e, whither Cortes immediately repaired with his small body of men, after crossing the river. When he entered the town, the arrival of strangers on horseback and others on foot, in the first moments, spread a great consternation among the inhabitants, but as soon as they learnt that it was the man whose fame was spread through the whole of these provinces and New Spain, they were almost overcome with joy. All the inhabitants instantly a.s.sembled to wait upon him and to congratulate him upon his safe arrival. Our general received them in the kindest manner possible, and then ordered the commandant Nieto to load the two boats belonging to the town, and all the canoes he could get with ca.s.save bread, and despatch them to Sandoval. The commandant immediately set about to fulfil these commands, but was unable to collect more than fifty pounds of this bread, as the colonists had had no other food than the fruits which they gathered from the trees, some vegetables, and what fish they could catch. Even this small quant.i.ty of ca.s.save bread had been set apart for their voyage to Cuba.

With these provisions the two boats, manned with eight sailors, left for the place where Sandoval was encamped with our troops. Cortes, in a letter to the latter officer, desired that he, with Luis Marin, should cross the last over the broad river, and was particularly cautioned not to allow more than a certain number of the men to be ferried across at a time on account of the rapidity of the stream. No horses were to be taken across by the canoes, and even the boats were not to take more than two at a time.

When these vessels arrived there immediately rose a dispute as to whom should be ferried across first, and Saavedra, with his brother Avalos, pretended to have a prior claim, because they happened to be related to Cortes, but Sandoval maintained that this honour was unquestionably due to the three reverend monks. Saavedra persisted, however, that as a relation of Cortes the precedence was due to him, and answered Sandoval in very unbecoming terms, whose blood now also began to boil, and the dispute rose to so high a pitch that Saavedra drew his dagger.

Sandoval, who was standing up to his knees in the water to prevent the boats being overloaded, rushed upon his antagonist, and, seizing him by the hand in which he held the dagger, he dragged him headlong into the water. If the rest of us had not hastened up and parted them, Saavedra would most likely have ended his life in this affray, for the troops, almost to a man, were on Sandoval's side.

Four whole days were consumed before all our men had crossed over, during which time we had nothing to eat but the nuts we gathered from some low palm-trees, which we roasted on the fire and ate the kernels.

One of our soldiers, named Tarifa, ventured across the river with his horse in a canoe, was upset, and both were most likely drowned, for no traces could be found of either. Two other horses met with a similar fate, one of which was the property of Solis Casquete, who behaved like a madman when he found his horse was lost, and wished our general, with the whole expedition, in the infernal regions.

The excessive hunger we endured during the time we were occupied in ferrying across, created altogether great discontent among the troops, and they murmured loudly against Cortes, and this dreadful march. When we arrived in the town we found our condition very little bettered, for there was neither any bread in the storehouses nor in the dwellings of the colonists; who, in the bargain, were even unacquainted with the surrounding neighbourhood, and only knew the way to two townships, which had long ago been deserted by the inhabitants. Cortes' first care was to adopt some means for obtaining provisions; he, therefore, instantly despatched Luis Marin, with the soldiers of Guacasualco into the country, in search of maise. How far we succeeded in this I will relate in the following chapter.

CHAPTER CLx.x.x.

_How eighty of us on the second day after our arrival in Buena Vista, marched out under the command of Luis Marin to explore the country and to search for provisions._

The population of the town of Buena Vista consisted of forty Spaniards, four Spanish ladies and two mulattoes. The whole of these people were suffering from ill health, and had a yellow sickly appearance about them. They had no provisions, and suffered as much from hunger as we did ourselves, nor could any one tell where we were to go in search of maise for this purpose. Cortes, therefore, saw that there was not a moment to be lost, and he despatched Luis Marin, with the men of Guacasualco, into the country.