and fly far away from us, so that we cannot catch them.
Withal we are the vassals of God and of the King, and always desirous
to fulfil the wishes of his Minister . . . so we pray to God
that that best of birds, the Holy Ghost, may descend upon the King. . . .
Furthermore, we desire to say that the Spanish custom
is not to our liking -- for everyone to take care of himself,
instead of helping one another in their daily toil.'

This quaint and touching letter was written originally in Guarani,
and is preserved at Buenos Ayres. `That best of birds,
the Holy Ghost,' shows faith grounded, at least, on ornithology,
and the whole spirit of the simple document is as pathetic
as its unconscious philosophy is true.
--

None the less, of all the discoverers of America he is the man of least
imaginative power -- that is, in matters appertaining to natural history --
so one must conclude he had his piece of unicorn from Spain,
where he most probably had bought it from some dealer in necessaries
for travellers to the New World.

After a stormy voyage he arrived in Spain to find his accusers
just before him. With truly Eastern justice, both accusers and accused
were put in gaol, a custom worthy of adoption in other lands.
Nunez was soon released on bail, and, his accusers having all died,
in eight years' time he was triumphantly acquitted of all the charges brought
against him. To prove, however, that Justice is and always has been blind,
the King never restored him to his government in Paraguay, and,
as Nunez says, forgot to repay him what he had expended in his service.*
With Alvar Nunez was lost the only chance of liberal treatment