the viceroy at present has a mill. I refused these possessions, because I considered that I was in honour bound not to leave Sandoval, who was my particular friend. He was well aware of my reasons, and in the subsequent campaigns I made with him he strove in every way to further my views.
In this province Sandoval laid the foundation of a town, which, by the desire of Cortes, he named Medellin, after the latter's native place, in Estremadura. There was a bay in this province, into which the Chalchocucea river33 empties itself, or, as we termed it, the Banderas stream, where we made the 16,000 pesos during the expedition under Grijalva; at first all communication with Spain was from this harbour, until Vera Cruz became the chief port.
We now marched towards the river Guacasualco, and we may have been about 240 miles from the last-mentioned town, when we arrived on the confines of the province of Citla, the climate of which is the most bracing of all, the country itself abounding in provisions, and more thickly populated than any we had visited. It was of this province I remarked that it was forty-eight miles long, as many in breadth, with a vast population.
When we arrived at the river Guacasualco we sent for the caziques of the different townships; but as three days passed by without any one making his appearance, or our receiving any answer, we concluded the inhabitants were preparing to attack us. At first, indeed, they had resolved to oppose our crossing the river, but they soon came to a more reasonable determination, and arrived in our camp on the fifth day with a supply of provisions, and a few ornaments of very pure gold. They immediately offered to furnish us with a sufficient number of large canoes, if we felt any inclination to cross the river. Sandoval thanked them for their kind offer, but previously held a consultation with us as to whether it was advisable for all the troops to cross over at once; and we