cannon, which we now fired, forced them to give ground, and they, keeping their ranks, retreated. Four of our men were wounded and seventeen of the foe lay dead. When we had gone into night quarters near a brook we found that they had abandoned their homes at war summons and had carried away the dogs which they breed for food. But in the night the animals escaped and came back to their familiar homes and we caught many. They made a rather good supper.
Next morning, after we had commended ourselves to God in prayer, we set out with each company marching in close order, our horsemen particularly guardful that the foe should not break our ranks and divide our company. And as we marched two armies of warriors, about six thousand men, came up with terrific din of trumpets, drums and yells, flying arrows at us, hurling their darts, and conducting themselves with every show of valor. Cortes now ordered us to halt and he sent forward three prisoners of the day before to say that we came to them as brothers and wished them to stay hostilities. When our three go-betweens began to speak the Indians attacked us the more furiously, so that we could not stand idly waiting. "Santiago!" cried Cortes. "On to them!" and in an instant our firearms answered so sharply that numbers were killed and wounded.
