the
town of an Indian chief called Ucita. His house stood near the beach,
and at the other end of the town was a temple, on the top of which
perched a wooden fowl with gilded eyes. Within these eyes were pearls
such as the Indians greatly value, piercing them for beads and
stringing them to wear about their necks and wrists.
When
the Indian queen welcomed the Spanish adventurer to the hospitalities
of the Cutifachiqui, she drew from over her head a long string of
pearls, and throwing it around his neck, exchanged with him gracious
words of friendship and courtesy. Observing that the Christians valued
these pearls, the cacica told the governor that if he would order some
sepul-chers to be searched that were in the village, he would find many
; and, if he chose to send to those which were in the uninhabited
towns, he might load all his horses with them. The Spaniards did
examine and rifle of their contents the sepulchers in Cutifachiqui ;
and, upon the authority of the Knight of Elvas, obtained from them 350
pounds'weight of pearls, some of which were formed after the similitude
of babies and birds. If the truth were known, or if an Indian had
written this account, we should feel assured that De Soto and his
companions, in their eager quest for treasures, violated the graves
without permission and plundered the receptacles wherein were gathered
the most costly possessions of the natives. As a proof that the Indians
did not willingly part with these ornaments, but suffered the pillage
through fear of these strange and wanton men, we are informed that when
the cacica, whom De Soto compelled to accompany him with the intention
of taking her to Guaxule, which was the farthest limit of her
territory, succeeded in making her escape, she carried back with her a
cane box filled with unbored pearls, the most precious of all her
jewels.
Luys
Hernandez de Biedma says that the governor, while at this town, opened
a "mosque" in which were interred the chief personages of that country.
" From it we took a quantity of pearls of the weight of as many as
6-1/2 or 7 arrobas, though they were injured from lying in the earth
and in the adipose substance of the dead." In the estimate of the
relator, one of the
