[Footnote 250:  Called afterwards the town of John De Viso.—­E.]

We went on the 10th to the shore, when a canoe came off with a considerable quantity of gold; and after long haggling we at length reduced their measure to a nail less than three ells, and brought up their weight to an angel and twenty grains, after which, in about a quarter of an hour, I sold cloth for a pound and a quarter of an ounce of gold.  They then made signs for me to tarry till they had parted their cloth among them on shore, after their custom, and away they went and spread all their cloth on the sand.  At this time a man came running from the town and spoke with them, and immediately they all hastened away into the woods to hide their cloth and gold.  We suspected some treachery, and though invited by signs to land we would not, but returned on board the Hind, whence we could see 30 men on the hill, whom we judged to be Portuguese, who went up to the top of the hill, where they drew up with a flag.  Being desirous to know what the people of the Hart were about, I went to her in the Hind’s boat, and on nearing her was surprised on seeing her shoot off two pieces of ordnance.  I then made as much haste as possible, and met her boat and skiff coming with all speed from the shore.  We all met on board the Hart, when they told me that they had been on shore all day, where they had given 3-1/2 yards of cloth to each of Don Johns two sons, and three basins between them, and had delivered 3 yards more cloth at the agreed weight of an angel and 12 grains.  That while remaining on shore for an answer, some Portuguese had come running down the hill upon them, of which the negroes had given them warning shortly before, but they understood them not.  The sons of Don John had conspired with the Portuguese against them, so that they were almost taken by surprise; yet they recovered their boat and pushed off from the shore, on which the Portuguese discharged their calivers or muskets at them, but hurt none of them; in revenge for which hostility, the people in the ship had fired off the two guns formerly mentioned.  We now laid bases[251] into both the boats and the skiff, manning and arming them all, and went again towards the shore; but being unable to land on account of the wind, we lay off at the distance of about 200 yards, whence we fired against the Portuguese, but could not injure them as they were sheltered by the hill.  They fired upon us in return from the hills and rocks, the negroes standing by to help them, more from fear than love.  Seeing the negroes in such subjection that they durst not deal with us, we returned on board; and as the wind kept at east all night, we were unable to fetch the Hind, but I took the boat and went on board in the night, to see if any thing could be done there; and as in the morning we could perceive that the town was overawed by the Portuguese like the other, we weighed anchor and went along the coast to the eastwards.