The City Of Leon Taken And Burnt

The city of Leon is 20 mile up in the country. The way to it plain and even through a champion country of long grassy savannahs and spots of high woods.

About 5 miles from the landing-place there is a sugar-work, three mile farther there is another, and two mile beyond that there is a fine river to ford, which is not very deep, besides which there is no water in all the way till you come to an Indian town which is two miles before you come to the city, and from thence it is a pleasant straight sandy way to Leon. This city stands in a plain not far from a high peaked mountain which oftentimes casts forth fire and smoke from its top.

It may be seen at sea and it is called the volcano of Leon. The houses of Leon are not high built but strong and large, with gardens about them.

The walls are stone and the covering of pan-tile: there are three churches and a cathedral which is the head church in these parts. Our countryman Mr. Gage, who travelled in these parts, recommends it to the world as the pleasantest place in all America, and calls it the Paradise of the Indies.

Indeed if we consider the advantage of its situation we may find it surpassing most places for health and pleasure in America, for the country about it is of a sandy soil which soon drinks up all the rain that falls, to which these parts are much subject. It is encompassed with savannahs; so that they have the benefit of the breezes coming from any quarter; all which makes it a very healthy place. It is a place of no great trade and therefore not rich in money. Their wealth lies in their pastures, and cattle, and plantations of sugar. It is said that they make cordage here of hemp, but if they have any such manufactory it is at some distance from the town, for here is no sign of any such thing.

Thither our men were now marching; they went from the canoes about eight o’clock. Captain Townley, with 80 of the briskest men, marched before, Captain Swan with 100 men marched next, and Captain Davis with 170 men marched next, and Captain Knight brought up the rear. Captain Townley, who was near two mile ahead of the rest, met about 70 horsemen four miles before he came to the city, but they never stood him. About three o’clock Captain Townley, only with his 80 men, entered the town, and was briskly charged in a broad street with 170 or 200 Spanish horsemen, but, two or three of their leaders being knocked down, the rest fled.

Their foot consisted of about 500 men, which were drawn up in the parade; for the Spaniards in these parts make a large square in every town, though the town itself be small. The square is called the parade: commonly the church makes one side of it, and the gentlemen’s houses, with their galleries about them, the other. But the foot also seeing their horse retire left an empty city to Captain Townley; beginning to save themselves by flight. Captain Swan came in about four o’clock, Captain Davis with his men about five, and Captain Knight with as many men as he could encourage to march came in about six, but he left many men tired on the road; these, as is usual, came dropping in one or two at a time, as they were able.

The next morning the Spaniards killed one of our tired men; he was a stout old grey-headed man, aged about 84, who had served under Oliver in the time of the Irish rebellion; after which he was at Jamaica, and had followed privateering ever since. He would not accept of the offer our men made him to tarry ashore but said he would venture as far as the best of them: and when surrounded by the Spaniards he refused to take quarter, but discharged his gun amongst them, keeping a pistol still charged, so they shot him dead at a distance. His name was Swan; he was a very merry hearty old man and always used to declare he would never take quarter: but they took Mr. Smith who was tired also; he was a merchant belonging to Captain Swan and, being carried before the governor of Leon, was known by a Mulatta woman that waited on him. Mr. Smith had lived many years in the Canaries and could speak and write very good Spanish, and it was there this Mulatta woman remembered him. He being examined how many men we were said 1000 at the city, and 500 at the canoes, which made well for us at the canoes, who straggling about every day might easily have been destroyed.

But this so daunted the governor that he did never offer to molest our men, although he had with him above 1000 men, as Mr. Smith guessed. He sent in a flag of truce about noon, pretending to ransom the town rather than let it be burnt, but our captains demanded 300,000 pieces-of-eight for its ransom, and as much provision as would victual 1000 men four months, and Mr. Smith to be ransomed for some of their prisoners; but the Spaniards did not intend to ransom the town, but only capitulated day after day to prolong time, till they had got more men. Our captains therefore, considering the distance that they were from the canoes, resolved to be marching down. The 14th day in the morning they ordered the city to be set on fire, which was presently done, and then they came away: but they took more time in coming down than in going up. The 15th day in the morning the Spaniards sent in Mr. Smith and had a gentlewoman in exchange.

Realejo Creek; The Town And Commodities; The Guava-Fruit, And Prickly-Pear

Then our captains sent a letter to the governor to acquaint him that they intended next to visit Realejo, and desired to meet him there:

They also released a gentleman on his promise of paying 150 beefs for his ransom, and to deliver them to us at Realejo; and the same day our men came to their canoes: where, having stayed all night, the next morning we all entered our canoes and came to the harbour of Realejo, and in the afternoon our ships came thither to an anchor.

The creek that leads to Realejo lies from the north-west part of the harbour and it runs in northerly. It is about two leagues from the island in the harbour’s mouth to the town; two thirds of the way it is broad, then you enter a narrow deep creek, bordered on both sides with red mangrove trees whose limbs reach almost from one side to the other.

A mile from the mouth of the creek it turns away west. There the Spaniards have made a very strong breast-work fronting towards the mouth of the creek, in which were placed 100 soldiers to hinder us from landing: and 20 yards below that breast-work there was a chain of great trees placed cross the creek so that 10 men could have kept off 500 or 1000.

When we came in sight of the breast-work we fired but two guns and they all ran away: and we were afterwards near half an hour cutting the boom or chain.

Here we landed and marched to the town of Realejo, or Rea Lejo, which is about a mile from hence. This town stands on a plain by a small river. It is a pretty large town with three churches and a hospital that has a fine garden belonging to it: besides many large fair houses, they all stand at a good distance one from another, with yards about them. This is a very sickly place and I believe has need enough of a hospital; for it is seated so nigh the creeks and swamps that it is never free from a noisome smell. The land about it is a strong yellow clay: yet where the town stands it seems to be sand. Here are several sorts of fruits, as guavas, pineapples, melons, and prickly-pears. The pineapple and melon are well known.

The guava fruit grows on a hard scrubbed shrub whose bark is smooth and whitish, the branches pretty long and small, the leaf somewhat like the leaf of a hazel, the fruit much like a pear, with a thin rind; it is full of small hard seeds, and it may be eaten while it is green, which is a thing very rare in the Indies: for most fruit, both in the East or West Indies, is full of clammy, white, unsavoury juice before it is ripe, though pleasant enough afterwards. When this fruit is ripe it is yellow, soft, and very pleasant. It bakes as well as a pear, and it may be coddled, and it makes good pies. There are of divers sorts, different in shape, taste, and colour. The inside of some is yellow, of others red. When this fruit is eaten green, it is binding, when ripe, it is loosening.

The prickly-pear, bush, or shrub, of about four or five foot high, grows in many places of the West Indies, as at Jamaica and most other islands there; and on the Main in several places. This prickly shrub delights most in barren sandy grounds; and they thrive best in places that are near the sea: especially where the sand is saltish. The tree or shrub is three or four foot high, spreading forth several branches; and on each branch two or three leaves.

These leaves (if I may call them so) are round, as broad every way as the palm of a man’s hand, and as thick; their substance like house-leek: these leaves are fenced round with strong prickles above an inch long. The fruit grows at the farther edge of the leaf. it is as big as a large plum, growing small near the leaf, and big towards the top, where it opens like a medlar.

This fruit at first is green like the leaf, from whence it springs with small prickles about it; but when ripe it is of a deep red colour.

The inside is full of small black seeds mixed with a certain red pulp, like thick syrup. It is very pleasant in taste, cooling, and refreshing; but if a man eats 15 or 20 of them they will colour his water, making it look like blood. This I have often experienced, yet found no harm by it.

There are many sugar-works in the country, and estancias or beef farms: there is also a great deal of pitch, tar and cordage, made in the country, which is the chief of their trade. This town we approached without any opposition, and found nothing but empty houses; besides such things as they could not, or would not carry away, which were chiefly about 500 packs of flour, brought hither in the great ship that we left at Amapalla, and some pitch, tar and cordage.

These things we wanted and therefore we sent them all aboard. Here we received 150 beefs, promised by the gentleman that was released coming from Leon; besides, we visited the beef-farms every day, and the sugar-works, going in small companies of 20 or 30 men, and brought away every man his load; for we found no horses, which if we had, yet the ways were so wet and dirty that they would not have been serviceable to us.

We stayed here from the 17th till the 24th day, and then some of our destructive crew set fire to the houses: I know not by whose order, but we marched away and left them burning; at the breast-work we embarked into our canoes and returned aboard our ships.

CAPTAIN DAVIS AND OTHERS GO OFF FOR THE SOUTH COAST.

The 25th day Captain Davis and Captain Swan broke off consortship; for Captain Davis was minded to return again on the coast of Peru but Captain Swan desired to go farther to the westward.

I had till this time been with Captain Davis, but now left him, and went aboard of Captain Swan. It was not from any dislike to my old Captain, but to get some knowledge of the northern parts of this continent of Mexico: and I knew that Captain Swan determined to coast it as far north as he thought convenient, and then pass over for the East Indies; which was a way very agreeable to my inclination.

Captain Townley, with his two barks, was resolved to keep us company; but Captain Knight and Captain Harris followed Captain Davis. The 27th day in the morning Captain Davis with his ships went out of the harbour, having a fresh land wind. They were in company, Captain Davis’s ship with Captain Harris in her; Captain Davis’s bark and fire-ship, and Captain Knight in his own ship, in all four sail. Captain Swan took his last farewell of him by firing fifteen guns, and he fired eleven in return of the civility.

A Contagious Sickness At Realejo

We stayed here some time afterwards to fill our water and cut firewood; but our men, who had been very healthy till now, began to fall down apace in fevers.

Whether it was the badness of the water or the unhealthiness of the town was the cause of it we did not know; but of the two I rather believe it was a distemper we got at Realejo; for it was reported that they had been visited with a malignant fever in that town, which had occasioned many people to abandon it; and although this visitation was over with them, yet their houses and goods might still retain somewhat of the infection and communicate the same to us.

I the rather believe this because it afterwards raged very much, not only among us, but also among Captain Davis and his men, as he told me himself since when I met him in England: himself had like to have died, as did several of his and our men. The 3rd day of September we turned ashore all our prisoners and pilots, they being unacquainted further to the west, which was the coast that we designed to visit: for the Spaniards have a very little trade by sea beyond the river Lempa, a little to the north-west of this place.

About 10 o’clock in the morning the same day we went from hence, steering westward, being in company four sail, as well as they who left us, namely, Captain Swan and his bark, and Captain Townley and his bark, and about 340 men.

We met with very bad weather as we sailed along this coast: seldom a day passed but we had one or two violent tornadoes and with them very frightful flashes of lightning and claps of thunder; I did never meet with the like before nor since. These tornadoes commonly came out of the north-east. The wind did not last long but blew very fierce for the time. When the tornadoes were over we had the wind at west, sometimes at west-south-west and south-west, and sometimes to the north of the west, as far as the north-west.