are not afarre from them, and we shall be forced to shoote. Wee are alone,
and should runne the hazzard of 2 women for to be discovered. Our breethren
also would be in danger that knowes nothing. Moreover it's night; what dost
thou intend to doe? You say well, replyes he; lett us hide ourselves in the
wood, for we cannot goe downe in the river in the night time. Att breake of
day we will [goe] back to our companions where we will finde them in the
fort.

Here we came without any provisions, where we must lie under a rotten
tree. That night it rayned sadly. We weare wett; but a naturall Exercise is
good fire. We weare in our boat early in the morning, and with great
diligence we came back better then we went up, for the river grewed mighty
high by reason of so much that fell of raine. I will not omitt a strange
accident that befell us as we came. You must know that as we past under the
trees, as before mentioned, there layd on one of the trees a snake with
foure feete, her head very bigg, like a Turtle, the nose very small att the
end, the necke of 5 thumbs wide, the body about 2 feet, and the tayle of a
foot & a halfe, of a blackish collour, onto a shell small and round, with
great eyes, her teeth very white but not long. That beast was a sleepe upon
one of the trees under which wee weare to goe; neither of us ever seeing
such a creature weare astonished. We could not tell what to doe. It was
impossible to carry our boat, for the thicknesse of the wood; to shoot att
her wee would att least be discovered, besides it would trouble our
Company. Att last we weare resolved to goe through att what cost soever,
and as we weare under that hellish beast, shee started as shee awaked, and
with that fell'd downe into our boat, there weare herbes that served [to
secure] us from that dreadfull animal. We durst not ventur to kill her, for
feare of breaking of our boat. There is the question who was most fearfull?
As for me, I quaked. Now seeing shee went not about to doe us hurt, and
that shee was fearfull, we lett her [be] quiet, hoping shortly to land and