第31章 THE DISCOVERY OF GUIANA(26)

After that I had resolved Topiawari, lord of Aromaia, that I could not at this time leave with him the companies he desired, and that I was contented to forbear the enterprise against the Epuremei till the next year, he freely gave me his only son to take with me into England; and hoped that though he himself had but a short time to live, yet that by our means his son should be established after his death. And I left with him one Francis Sparrow, a servant of Captain Gifford, who was desirous to tarry, and could describe a country with his pen, and a boy of mine called Hugh Goodwin, to learn the language. I after asked the manner how the Epuremei wrought those plates of gold, and how they could melt it out of the stone. He told me that the most of the gold which they made in plates and images was not severed from the stone, but that on the lake of Manoa, and in a multitude of other rivers, they gathered it in grains of perfect gold and in pieces as big as small stones, and they put it to a part of copper, otherwise they could not work it; and that they used a great earthen pot with holes round about it, and when they had mingled the gold and copper together they fastened canes to the holes, and so with the breath of men they increased the fire till the metal ran, and then they cast it into moulds of stone and clay, and so make those plates and images. I have sent your honours of two sorts such as I could by chance recover, more to shew the manner of them than for the value. For I did not in any sort make my desire of gold known, because I had neither time nor power to have a great quantity. I gave among them many more pieces of gold than I received, of the new money of twenty shillings with her Majesty's picture, to wear, with promise that they would become her servants thenceforth.

I have also sent your honours of the ore, whereof I know some is as rich as the earth yieldeth any, of which I know there is sufficient, if nothing else were to be hoped for. But besides that we were not able to tarry and search the hills, so we had neither pioneers, bars, sledges, nor wedges of iron to break the ground, without which there is no working in mines. But we saw all the hills with stones of the colour of gold and silver, and we tried them to be no marcasite, and therefore such as the Spaniards call El madre del oro or "the mother of gold," which is an undoubted assurance of the general abundance; and myself saw the outside of many mines of the spar, which I know to be the same that all covet in this world, and of those more than I will speak of.

Having learned what I could in Canuri and Aromaia, and received a faithful promise of the principallest of those provinces to become servants to her Majesty, and to resist the Spaniards if they made any attempt in our absence, and that they would draw in the nations about the lake of Cassipa and those of Iwarawaqueri, I then parted from old Topiawari, and received his son for a pledge between us, and left with him two of ours as aforesaid. To Francis Sparrow I gave instructions to travel to Macureguarai with such merchandises as I left with them, thereby to learn the place, and if it were possible, to go on to the great city of Manoa. Which being done, we weighed anchor and coasted the river on Guiana side, because we came upon the north side, by the lawns of the Saima and Wikiri.

There came with us from Aromaia a cacique called Putijma, that commanded the province of Warapana, which Putijma slew the nine Spaniards upon Caroli before spoken of; who desired us to rest in the port of his country, promising to bring us unto a mountain adjoining to his town that had stones of the colour of gold, which he performed.

And after we had rested there one night I went myself in the morning with most of the gentlemen of my company over-land towards the said mountain, marching by a river's side called Mana, leaving on the right hand a town called Tuteritona, standing in the province of Tarracoa, of which Wariaaremagoto is principal. Beyond it lieth another town towards the south, in the valley of Amariocapana, which beareth the name of the said valley; whose plains stretch themselves some sixty miles in length, east and west, as fair ground and as beautiful fields as any man hath ever seen, with divers copses scattered here and there by the river's side, and all as full of deer as any forest or park in England, and in every lake and river the like abundance of fish and fowl; of which Irraparragota is lord.

From the river of Mana we crossed another river in the said beautiful valley called Oiana, and rested ourselves by a clear lake which lay in the middle of the said Oiana; and one of our guides kindling us fire with two sticks, we stayed awhile to dry our shirts, which with the heat hung very wet and heavy on our shoulders. Afterwards we sought the ford to pass over towards the mountain called Iconuri, where Putijma foretold us of the mine. In this lake we saw one of the great fishes, as big as a wine pipe, which they call manati, being most excellent and wholesome meat. But after I perceived that to pass the said river would require half-a-day's march more, I was not able myself to endure it, and therefore I sent Captain Keymis with six shot to go on, and gave him order not to return to the port of Putijma, which is called Chiparepare, but to take leisure, and to march down the said valley as far as a river called Cumaca, where I promised to meet him again, Putijma himself promising also to be his guide. And as they marched, they left the towns of Emperapana and Capurepana on the right hand, and marched from Putijma's house, down the said valley of Amariocapana; and we returning the same day to the river's side, saw by the way many rocks like unto gold ore, and on the left hand a round mountain which consisted of mineral stone.

From hence we rowed down the stream, coasting the province of Parino.