Panfilo de Narváez

“ To the excited fancy of the Spaniards the unknown land of Florida seemed the seat of surpassing wealth, and Pamphilo de Narvaez essayed to possess himself of its fancied treasures. Landing on its shores, and proclaiming destruction to the Indians unless they acknowledged the sovereignty of the Pope and the Emperor, he advanced into the forests with three hundred men. Nothing could exceed their sufferings. Nowhere could they find the gold they came to seek. The village of Appalache, where they hoped to gain a rich booty, offered nothing but a few mean wigwams. ”

“ But Narvaez saw the marks of a noble mind within, as he drew up his manly figure to its height, displaying to the best advantage his finely proportioned limbs, whilst his brow contracted with a look almost of defiance. He saw that there was something more than his present misfortune which so powerfully affected him,—and at once he became deeply interested in the youth. ”

“ What can the people be thinking of that they remain thus in silence? Applaud, imbeciles! It is Narvaez who is resuscitated. Now we have another master!” No Spanish general who had arrived at Polaviejaʼs position would find it possible to be absolutely neutral in politics, but to compare him with Narvaez, the military dictator, proved in a few daysʼ time to be the grossest absurdity. On May 13 Polavieja arrived in Barcelona physically broken, half blind, and with evident traces of a disordered liver. ”

“ He was in the field, and hard upon the heels of a Carlist corps commanded by a chief known as the Organist, when an orderly, bearing despatches from Madrid, came up at speed. “Yonder rebels,” said Narvaez, after reading his letters, and pointing to the enemy, “may truly say that they exist by royal order.” The despatches directed him instantly to quit Arragon, and pursue Gomez, who had left Biscay on his celebrated expedition to the southern provinces of Spain. ”

“ After Cortes had issued these commands in writing to his principal officers, he said: "I am fully aware that Narvaez has four times the men we have; but most of them are not accustomed to arms. A great number are adverse to their general, many are sick, and we shall fall upon them unawares. All opposition on their part will be fruitless, and I am fully confident the Almighty will grant us the victory. Narvaez's men also know they will lose nothing by the change, and would fare better in every respect by being with us than with him. ”

“ Leaving Spain in the autumn of 1527, with five ships and a force of some 600 men, Narvaez arrived, after many delays, in the Bay of Tampa, on the west coast of Florida, in February, 1528. Landing with half of his forces, the leader at once commenced his march to the interior, in spite of the remonstrances of some of the chief officers, who feared that if he once lost sight of his vessels he would never see them again. Remembering the experience of Cortes, Narvaez hoped to find a second wealthy nation to plunder ”

“ Though a gallant warrior, Narvaez was not equal to the task he had set himself, and Cortes, having learned what was before him, turned the tables upon Narvaez and his force by becoming the arrestor instead of the arrested. It requires no great knowledge of human nature to picture the fierce anger of Narvaez and his men. When Cortes eventually released them, it was on condition that he be left alone, and that Narvaez return to Spain. ”

“ Then Pedro Farfan, a good soldier, was the first to lay hold of Narvaez, and in an instant we were shouting, "Long live the king! Long live the king! and in his royal name Cortes! Victory! Victory! Narvaez is dead!"
In the hurry of the moment we merely fastened fetters about Narvaez' legs, but now Sandoval came up and ordered him better secured. Our captain came also at the same time, and in full armor. The weather was hot and he had so heated himself, going from place to place and shouting to our soldiers and giving orders, that he was dripping with perspiration and panting for breath. ”

“ Despising the ignorant and untrained races of Indians and overweeningly confident in the mighty influence of the name of his king and the power of the Spanish arms, Pamphilo de Narvaez, having obtained from Charles the Fifth a grant of all the lands from Cape Florida to the River of Palms in Mexico, determined to extend the Spanish rule and the Catholic faith. ”

“ But the craft of the Indian had once more supplied his want of strength to cope with the white man. So soon as the Spaniards were asleep in the miserable wigwams they had seized, the savages gathered round them with stealthy tread, and set fire to their temporary resting-places. Many who escaped the flames fell victims to the poisoned arrows let fly with unerring aim from ambushes on every side, and when the morning broke, the few survivors, including Narvaez himself, determined to return to the sea by the shortest route they could find. ”

“ As may naturally be supposed, each related to the other his misfortunes, and as Narvaez was a man of a haughty disposition, he said smilingly to Garay on one occasion: "What very fine things, Señor Adelantado, have been told me by several of the men who have deserted your troops! They assert, that on every occasion when you wished to encourage your officers you used to say: 'We must show ourselves brave men and fight valiantly about with Cortes' soldiers, and not allow ourselves to be cozened as Narvaez was.' But what say you now, Señor? I lost one of my eyes in the battle I fought with Cortes ”

“ He had been at Tabasco, at Tzimpantzinco, and in the three pitched battles in Tlascala, and was familiar with what he heard.
“How they fight!” he said to himself. “Don Pedro is a good sword and brave gentlemen, but—ah! if the Señor Hernan were there, I should feel better: he is a good sword, brave gentleman, and wise general, also. Heaven fights for him. Ill betide Narvaez! Why could he not have put off his coming until the city was reduced? Jesu! The sounds come this way now. Victory! The guns have quit, the infidels fly, on their heels ride the cavaliers. ”

“ In the mean time, Cortes and his little army stood drenched in the rain without a murmur; every man seemed happy and contented. Naturally supposing that Narvaez and his men would be weary and unsuspicious of his approach after such a day, he determined to attack them at midnight, while they were all in their quarters. ”

“ The reason why Narvaez's troops suffered more at the bridges than those of Cortes', was from their having overloaded [Pg 357] themselves with gold, the weight of which prevented them from swimming, and otherwise encumbered their movements.
After this splendid victory, we dined off some gourds which grew in the fields, and joyfully continued our march to Tlascalla. We carefully avoided passing through any villages, as our enemies still continued at a distance to fly their arrows at us, and to pour out abusive language. ”

“ Saying this Roque wrapped the hand with his great kerchief.
“Where do you desire that I take you?” he asked. “You cannot go alone.”
“Go and leave me; do not let them take you prisoner,” replied Panfilo.
“Though they take me to jail, I will not leave you.”
“Well, then, help me to get near to Chopo. When we are within sight of the hacienda save yourself.”
“Wherever you wish; let us walk along.”
They started. Panfilo advanced with difficulty; he murmured and suffered with thirst. He stopped frequently to drink in the arroyos and Roque gave him water in the hollow of his hand. ”

“ Indeed there is now little hope of pacification; for Narvaez has very grievously insulted Cortes, by proclaiming him a rebel and an outlaw, and setting a price on his head; and such is his hotheadedness, that, it was but yesterday, he compelled me to ship to Cuba the king's oidor, Vasques, whom he had arrested for daring to speak to him of amicable treaty. I look daily for intelligence of a battle. ”

“ Upon this Cortes launched out in praise of the courage we had shown in every battle: "Up to this moment," he continued, "we have fought to defend our lives, but now we shall have to fight valiantly for our lives and our honour. Our enemies have nothing less in contemplation than to take us all prisoners, and rob us of our property. No one could tell whether Narvaez was commissioned by the emperor himself; all this was merely done at the instigation of our most deadly enemy, the bishop of Burgos. ”

“ Narvaez ordered meat and drink to be set before them, and as their glasses were abundantly filled, they said to one another in his presence: "This is indeed leading a different sort of life with a glass of good wine in one's hand, when compared to the slavery under Cortes, who allows a person no rest either night or day; where a person dares scarcely say a word, and death is always staring him in the face." ”

“ Narvaez, in his message to Motecusuma, calumniated Cortes and all of us, telling him we were nothing but a parcel of thieves and vagabonds, who had fled from Spain without the knowledge of our emperor, but his imperial majesty having been informed that we were in this country committing all manner of depredations, and that we had even imprisoned its monarch, had ordered him to repair hither with his flotilla and troops, to put an end to these disorders and liberate the monarch. ”

“ The proud Narvaez turned to him and said: “Señor Cortes, you have cause to congratulate yourself upon the good luck which has made me your prisoner.” Such haughtiness seemed to need some reproof, so Cortes replied: “All that God does is well done; meanwhile, I assure you that I consider the victory just won and your capture as among my slightest achievements.” Cortes kept him bound and had him taken to Vera Cruz. ”

“ Narvaez, what a fortunate man you are, that you just arrive at the moment when the traitor Cortes has heaped together above 700,000 pesos, and the whole of his men are so enraged with him for his having cheated them out of the greater part of the gold, that many even disdain to accept of their shares. ”

“ When, therefore, the renowned Hernando de Soto, who had been in close attendance on Pizarro throughout his romantic career in Peru, asked for and obtained permission from Ferdinand of Spain to take possession of Florida in his name, hundreds of volunteers of every rank flocked to his standard. Narvaez had failed for want of knowledge as to how to deal with the natives; doubtless the land of gold could yet be found by those who knew how to wrest the secret of its position from the sons of the soil ”

“ The loss fell chiefly upon the Tlascalans, the cross-bowmen, and arquebusiers, whose arms the rain had ruined, and the recruits of Narvaez, who, weighted down by their treasure and overcome by fear, ran blindly along, and fell almost without resistance.
One great effort Cortes made at the canal to restore order before the mob could come up.
“God help us!” he cried at last to the gentlemen with him. “Here are bowmen and gunners without arms, and horsemen without room to charge. Nothing now but to save ourselves! And that we may not do, if we wait. Let us follow Sandoval. ”

“ At that time part of the horse furniture used by the Spaniards was hung with bells; and on hearing the sound of these, and seeing Narvaez coming towards them at a round trot, with his sword drawn, they lost heart, and not only abandoned the enterprize, but fled out of the country, some of them to the distance of 50 leagues, leaving none but their old and decrepid people behind. After this Velasquez sent a reinforcement to Narvaez, who became absolute master of the country. ”

“ In all the adjacent streets, people were running for their lives; and the congregations, which were then just leaving mass—for this occurred on a Sabbath morning—recoiled for safety into the churches.
As a politician, Narvaez is unquestionably an obstinate and unscrupulous dunce, who feels his incompetency to rule by any means but the sword, and has substituted a tyrannical dictatorship supported by bayonets, for the legal and constitutional government of Spain. In a military point of view he is more respectable, although even as a general his exploits have been few and little heard of. ”

“ Narvaez had no better fate than his friend the governor of Cuba. In the hope of retrieving his fortunes, he continued to pursue his adventurous career, and embarked in an expedition to Honduras. It was his last; and Las Casas, who had little love for the Conquerors, and who had watched the acts of cruelty perpetrated by Narvaez, concludes the notice of his death with the assurance that the “devil took possession of his soul.”
The announcement of the emperor’s commission confirming Cortés in the supreme authority of New Spain was received there with general acclamation. ”

“ Malinatzin and his teules will come upon you by surprise and put you all to death." Narvaez, being confident in his vast superiority, laughed heartily at the fears of the fat cacique, yet did not neglect the warning. In the first place, he declared war against us as rebels, with fire, sword, and rope, and then drew up his whole army, cavalry, artillery, and infantry, in a plain about a quarter of a league from Chempoalla, where he resolved to wait for us; all of which we learned from a soldier, named El Galleguillo, who either deserted to us, or was sent by Duero to Cortes. ”

“ They were but three in number, and a hundred shots have missed them, while they have slain some of our best men."
"By all the might of hell!" exclaimed Narvaez, in a voice of bitter rage, "they shall not escape us, if we once more gain sight of them. To the gay bravo with the large black feathers I bear a hatred, that every drop of blood in his coward heart only can quench. To think that they should escape us scathless, after having slain so many!"
"Poor Julian Diaz!" said Vadija. "A more jolly monk was not in Estremadura, where there are well nigh six thousand of the cord and cowl." ”