vivors of the ill-fated town of Nombre de Dios. He then took the field against the Indians, first capturing and imprisoning the chieftain Cuareca along with his family, and afterwards pillaging the lands of an Indian chief named Ponca. This brought him and his men to the territory of another Indian chieftain named Comagre, at that time probably the most powerful chief in the entire Darien region. Comagre lived in a state of magnificence, and had the mummies of his ancestors enshrouded in rich rich cloths, adorned with pearls, precious stones, and ornaments of gold. Although he had 3,000 warriors at his call, he received Balboa peaceably, and gave him the freedom of his domain. Comagre's eldest son named Panquiaco became very friendly with Balboa, and besides presenting him with 4,000 ounces of gold, and 60 women slaves, taken prisoners in battle with neighboring tribes, gave him the information that back of the line of mountains that reared their tops in the dim distance, was a nation very rich and powerful, having ships with sails like the Spaniards, and using vessels of solid gold. He also told him of a temple of gold called Dabaibe, situated forty leagues from Darien, on the banks of a great river, emptying into the Gulf of Urabá (1). In the aboriginal belief, Dabaibe was the mother of the Deity, which dominated the elements, and created the sun, moon, stars, and all things good.

Balboa's cupidity was greatly aroused by these tales, and returning to Santa Maria, prepared for an expedition in search of the golden temple. It is evident that at this period Balboa placed some credence in the Indian's tale of "ships with sails," but had more faith in the existence of a temple of gold. It is quite likely that this temple had reference to the treasure house of the Inca emperors at Cuzco, an account of which, more or less distorted, might easily have passed from tribe to tribe until reached the Darien.

(1) The Atrato River.

it

Balboa Seeks the Temple of Gold.

7

His expedition in trim, Balboa entered the mouth of the Atrato, and passed up it until he reached the Ri Negro, or Sucio, as it is commonly called on account of the color of its waters. Ascending this tributary he finally arrived at the lands of an Indian chief named Abibeiba, without having seen any indication of the object of his quest. He left here a company of 30 men to guard the place, and then returned to Darien, On arriving he found that the Indians under Cemaco, and five other chiefs, with a force of 5,000 warriors, and 100 canoes, had planned. an attack on the colony, which plot was disclosed by one of their number named Fulvia. Balboa at once took the initiative, surprised and defeated the Indians, and left Cemaco dead on the field.

In Quest of the South Sea.

About this time there were internal dissensions in*: the colony, but Balboa succeeded in pacifying all parties, so that by the time reinforcements arrived from Spain bringing to him the title him the title of Captain-General de la Antigua, he was ready to set out on an expedition in quest of the South Sea. He sailed from Santa Maria on the 1st. of September. 1513, taking with him 190 of his own men, some Indians, and a number of dogs. A short distance on his way, the Indian chief, Cuareea, who had been baptized by the Spaniards, gave him guides, some Indian auxiliaries, and on the 6th of September, after attending. mass to ask the blessing of God on his mission, he took the road to the mountains.

On the 8th of September, Balboa arrived at the home of the Indian chief, Ponca, mentioned in a previons expedition. Here he was the recipient of the first really credible information concerning the great sea to the South. Ponca informed him that the ocean would open to view after passing certain mountains, which he would show him. He also gave Balboa some curious, but handsomely?

f

formed gold ornaments, which the Indian said came from places on the ocean of which he spoke.

On the 20th of September he continued his march. The surface of the ground was so rough and broken, and there were so many small streams to cross, that in four days, he only covered thirty miles. At the end of this march, he came to the territory of the belligerent chieftain, Cuaracua, who gave him a hard fight. The Indian was finally overcome, and perished in company with 600 of his men. The town of Cuaracua where he now was, laid, he was told, at the foot of the last mountain remaining to be surmounted, before his eyes could rest on the object of his long and tedious march.

Balboa Discovers the Pacific.

On the 26th of September, a little after ten o'clock in the morning, the Spaniards discovered from the top of the mountain, the mighty waters of the Parific. The priest of the expedition, Andres de Vara, intoned the Te Deum, and all those in the company fell on their knees around him. They afterwards raised at this point a cross made of the trunk of a tree, braced up by rocks, and upon which they wrote, as well as on various trees in the vicinity, the names of the rulers of Spain. On his descent to the beach, Balboa and his men had to pass through the lands of an Indian warrior named Cheapes, who treated them kindly, and made them a present of 500 pounds of gold. Reaching the water-side, Balboa waded out knee-deep into the sea, and with the banner of Spain waving in his hands, proclaimed the vast ocean, and the coasts adjoining it, the property of his King.

Find Pearls of Fabulous Size.

Shortly after the discovery of the South Sea, as the Pacific was for a long time afterwards called, Balboa set

about making arrangements to explore the vicinity. The ocean at this point on the coast forms a gulf to which Balboa gave the name of San Miguel in honor of his having arrived there on the day the Catholic church celebrates this saint, which name it bears at the present time. He despatched one of his men named Alonso Martin at the head of a small company of Spaniards and Indians, to explore the coast in a canoe, while he himself embarked and went to an island inhabited by a chief named Tumaco. Martin, leaving first, has the credit of being the first European to navigate the waters of the Pacific. island Balboa landed on was one of many, and to the group, he gave the name of the Archiepelago de las Perlas, or the Pearl Archipelago. To the largest island

The

in the group he gave the name of Isla Rica, or Rich Island, on account of the quantities of pearls he found there, some of which were of great size. Balboa's papers relate how that the canoes of Chief Tumaco had their oars incrusted with pearls, so plentiful were they at this period. Some time after this, an expedition under Pizarro and Morales, two of Balboa's lieutenants, was sent against the Pearl Islands. They crossed the Isthmus by a less difficult route than Balboa had done, and arrived at the islands without incident. After four different battles with the chief whom they found in possession of Isla Rica, the latter finally surrendered, and as peace offering presented Pizarro and Morales with a basket full of very fine pearls, one of which weighed 25 carats, and afterwards sold for 4,000 ducats, equivalent to $9,120.00, veritably a prince's

ransom.

Origin of the "Bloody Shirt."

After collecting all the gold and pearls he could lay hands on, Balboa returned to Darien, the only notable incident of the backward journey being the execution of a native chief named Ponera, together with three of his as