chiefest for a pilot, and carried him with me to Guiana; by whom I
understood where and in what countries the Spaniards had laboured for
gold, though I made not the same known to all. For when the springs
began to break, and the rivers to raise themselves so suddenly as by no
means we could abide the digging of any mine, especially for that the
richest are defended with rocks of hard stones, which we call the white
spar, and that it required both time, men, and instruments fit for such
a work, I thought it best not to hover thereabouts, lest if the same had
been perceived by the company, there would have been by this time many
barks and ships set out, and perchance other nations would also
have gotten of ours for pilots. So as both ourselves might have been
prevented, and all our care taken for good usage of the people been
utterly lost, by those that only respect present profit; and such
violence or insolence offered as the nations which are borderers
would have changed the desire of our love and defence into hatred and
violence. And for any longer stay to have brought a more quantity, which
I hear hath been often objected, whosoever had seen or proved the fury
of that river after it began to arise, and had been a month and odd
days, as we were, from hearing aught from our ships, leaving them meanly
manned 400 miles off, would perchance have turned somewhat sooner than
we did, if all the mountains had been gold, or rich stones. And to say
the truth, all the branches and small rivers which fell into Orenoque
were raised with such speed, as if we waded them over the shoes in the
morning outward, we were covered to the shoulders homeward the very same
day; and to stay to dig our gold with our nails, had been opus laboris
but not ingenii. Such a quantity as would have served our turns we could
not have had, but a discovery of the mines to our infinite disadvantage
we had made, and that could have been the best profit of farther search
or stay; for those mines are not easily broken, nor opened in haste, and
I could have returned a good quantity of gold ready cast if I had not