before, in pursuit of our people. Having gone about the space of two leagues, we
     were so fortunate as to overtake them. For they had lain that night at an Indian
     hut, or embarcadero, that is to say landing place, and had been taking in water
     till then. Being arrived at the place, they told us that we must not omit to fill
     our jars there with water, otherwise we should meet with none in the space of six
     days' time. Hereupon we went every one of us the distance of a quarter of a mile
     from the embarcadero, to a little pond, to fill our water in calabashes, making
     what haste we could back to our canoe. But when we returned, we found not one of
     our men, they all being departed and already got out of sight. Such is the prose-
     dure of these wild men that they care not in the least whom they lose of their
     company, or leave behind. We were now more troubled in our minds than before, fea-
     ring lest we should fall into the same misfortune we had so lately overcome.
     Hereupon we rowed after them, as fast as we possibly could, but all in vain. For
     here are found such huge number of islands, greater and lesser, as also keys about
     the mouth of the river, that it was not difficult for us, who were unacquainted
     with the river, to lose ourselves a second time amongst them. Yet notwithstanding,
     though with much trouble and toil, we found at last that mouth of the river, that
     is called by the Spaniards Boca chica, or the Little Mouth. But as it happened,
     it was now young flood, and the stream ran very violently against us; so that
     though we were not above a stone's cast from the said mouth, and this was within
     a league broad, yet we could not by any means come near it. Hence we were forced
     to put ashore, which we accordingly, until high-water. We hauled our canoe close
     by the bushes, and when we got out, we fastened our rope to a tree, which the tide
     had almost covered, for it flows here nearly four fathom deep.
     As soon as the tide began to turn, we rowed away from there to an island, distant
     about a league and a half from the mouth of the river, in the Gulf of San Miguel.
     Here in the gulf it went very hard with us, whensoever any wave dashed against the
     sides of the canoe, for it was nearly twenty feet in length, and not quite one
     foot and a half in breadth where it was at the broadest, so that we had only just
     room enough to sit down in her, and a little water would easily have both filled
     and overwhelmed us. At the island aforesaid, we took up our resting-place for that
     night, though it was, from the loss of our company, and the great dangers we were
     in, the sorrowfullest night that until then, I had ever experienced in my whole
     life. For it rained impetuously all night long, insomuch that we were wet from
     head to foot and had not one dry thread about us; neither, through the violence
     of the rain, were we able to keep any fire burning wherewith to warm or dry our-
     selves. The tide ebbs here a good half-mile from the mark of high-water, and lea-
     ves bare wonderfully high and sharp-pointed rocks. We passed this heavy and te-
     dious night without one minute of sleep, being all very sorrowful to see oursel-
     ves so far and remote from the rest of our companions, as also totally destitute