Valdivia took with him fifteen thousand pieces of gold, which belonged to the King as his fifth, and a charge to petition for the thousand men which were necessary to the expedition, and to prevent the adventurers being compelled to exterminate the tribes and caciques of the Indians, for otherwise, being so few in number, they would be driven, to avoid their own destruction, to the slaughter of all who would not submit themselves.

Ponce's conquest was limited to the northern and western littoral; the interior with the southern and eastern districts were not settled by the Spaniards till some years after the death of Guaybána; and it seems likely that there were caciques in those parts who, by reason of the distance or other impediments, took no part in the uprising against the Spaniards.

If a governor lost heavily at cards, he would give the winner an order upon some cacique for a corresponding amount of gold, or natives in default of the metal, knowing that the gold could no longer be procured.

This prompted Grijalva to lose as little time as possible in proceeding to explore the country; and, having presented the cacique with such things as he had to give, he took formal possession of the country for the king, and for James Velasquez in the king's name, and embarked to go elsewhere, because the north winds blew upon the land, and rendered his farther stay unsafe.

Before Gonzalez learned what was going on, Guaybána had summoned the neighboring caciques to a midnight "areyto" and laid his plan before them, which consisted in each of them, on a preconcerted day, falling upon the Spaniards living in or near their respective villages; the attack, on the same day, on Soto Mayor's settlement, he reserved for himself and Guariónez, the cacique of Utuáo.

Up to this time the harmony established by the prudent cacique between his tribesmen and the Spaniards on their first arrival had apparently not been disturbed.

He learned upon his arrival that Guarionex had been chosen by the other caciques as their commander-in-chief.

[Note 5: Hojeda tricked this cacique into allowing him to fasten handcuffs on him; after which the helpless chief was carried sixty leagues through the forests.

He had also incurred the dislike of influential caciques by defending the occupants of small holdings on friar estates from the rapacity of their rich neighbours, and by protecting free-patent applicants and homesteaders when large landowners opposed their applications in order to prevent their securing land, so that they might the more easily be held as peon labourers.

Morales first passed by the country of Chiapes, called Chiapeios, and of Tumaco, those two caciques along the South Sea who were friends of Vasco.

As soon as he was found, the men of Pochorroso and the neighbouring caciques overwhelmed him with insults, for Tumanama was no less detested by the neighbouring caciques than that Pacra whom we have mentioned in describing the expedition to the south sea.

Enchanted with this result, he overwhelmed Tumanama with nattering promises to prevent the cacique from interfering with any of the Spaniards' allies in that neighbourhood.

Thus foiled in their endeavours, they travelled westwards from one town to another much dismayed and comfortless, leaving their canoes behind; sometimes eating what they were able to find, and sometimes taking provisions by force, according as they found themselves sufficiently powerful to cope with the caciques through whose territories they passed.

Being now nearly ready to depart, the admiral took occasion to discourse with the cacique about the Caribs or Cannibals, of whom they complained and were in great dread; and therefore, as if to please him, he offered to leave some Christians behind for their protection.