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_The English-American his Travail by Sea and Land:_

OR,
A NEW SURVEY
OF THE
WEST INDIA'S,

_CONTAINING_

A Journall of Three thousand and Three hundred
Miles within the main Land of AMERICA.

Wherin is set forth his Voyage from _Spain_ to _St. John de Ulhua_;
and from thence to _Xalappa_, to _Tlaxcallan_, the City of _Angeles_, and
forward to _Mexico_; With the description of that great City,
as it was in former times, and also at this present.

Likewise his Journey from _Mexico_ through the Provinces of _Guaxaca,
Chiapa, Guatemala, Vera Paz, Truxillo, Comayagua_; with his
abode Twelve years about _Guatemala_, and especially in the
Indian-towns of _Mixco, Pinola, Petapa, Amatitlan_.

As also his strange and wonderfull Conversion, and Calling from those
remote Parts to his Native COUNTREY.

With his return through the Province of _Nicaragua_, and _Costa Rica_,
to _Nicoya, Panama, Portobelo, Cartagena,_ and _Havana_, with divers
occurrents and dangers that did befal in the said Journey.

_ALSO,_

A New and exact Discovery of the Spanish Navigation to
those Parts; And of their Dominions, Government, Religion, Forts,
Castles, Ports, Havens, Commodities, fashions, behaviour of
Spaniards, Priests and Friers, Blackmores, Mulatto's, Mestiso's,
Indians; and of their Feasts and Solemnities.

With a Grammar, or some few Rudiments of the _Indian_ Tongue,
called, _Poconchi_, or _Pocoman_.

_By the true and painfull endevours of_ THOMAS GAGE, _now Preacher of
the Word of God at_ Acris _in the County of_ KENT. Anno Dom. 1648.

_London_, Printed by _R. Cotes_, and are to be sold by _Humphrey
Blunden_ at the Castle in _Cornhill_, and _Thomas Williams_ at the
Bible in _Little-Britain_, 1648.




CONTENTS

The Epistle Dedicatory.

To the Reader.

A New Survey of the West-Indies.

    Chapter I.
    Chapter II.
    Chapter III.
    Chapter IV.
    Chapter V.
    Chapter VI.
    Chapter VII.
    Chapter VIII.
    Chapter IX.
    Chapter X.
    Chapter XI.
    Chapter XII.
    Chapter XIII.
    Chapter XIV.
    Chapter XV.
    Chapter XVI.
    Chapter XVII.
    Chapter XVIII.
    Chapter XIX.
    Chapter XX.
    Chapter XXI.
    Chapter XXII.

Rules for the Indian tongue
called Poconchi, or Pocoman.

A Table of the Chapters of this
Booke, with the Contents of the
most Remarkeable things in them.




_To His Excellency_

Sr. THOMAS FAIRFAX Knight, Lord _FAIRFAX_ of CAMERON,
CAPTAIN-GENERALL of the Parliaments Army;

And of all their
Forces in _ENGLAND_, and the Dominion of _WALES_.


May it please your EXCELLENCY,

_The Divine Providence hath hitherto so ordered my life, that for the
greatest part thereof, I have lived (as it were) in exile from my
native Countrey: which happened, partly, by reason of my education in
the Romish Religion, and that in forraign Universities; and partly,
by my entrance into Monasticall orders. For twelve years space of
which time, I was wholly disposed of in that part of_ America _called_
New-Spain, _and the parts adjacent. My difficult going thither, being
not permitted to any, but to those of the Spanish Nation; my long stay
there; and lastly my returning home, not onely to my Country, but to
the true knowledg and free-profession of the Gospels purity, gave me
reason to conceive, That these great mercies were not appointed me by
the heavenly Powers, to the end I should bury my Talent in the earth,
or hide my light under a bushell, but that I should impart what I
there saw and knew to the use and benefit of my English Country-men;
And which the rather I held my self obliged unto, because in a manner
nothing hath been written of these Parts for these hundred years last
past, which is almost ever since the first Conquest thereof by the_
Spaniards, _who are contented to lose the honour of that wealth and
felicity they have there since purchased by their great endevours, so
they may enjoy the safety of retaining what they have formerly gotten
in peace and security. In doing whereof I shall offer no Collections,
but such as shall arise from mine own observations, which will as
much differ from what formerly hath been hereupon written, as the
picture of a person grown to mans estate, from that which was taken
of him when he was but a Childe; or the last hand of the Painter, to
the first or rough draught of the picture. I am told by others, that
this may prove a most acceptable work; but I doe tell my self that it
will prove both lame and imperfect, and therefore had need to shelter
my self under the shadow of some high protection, which I humbly pray
your Excellency to afford me; nothing doubting, but as God hath lately
made your Excellency the happy instrument, not onely of saving my
self, but of many numbers of godly and well-affected people in this
County of_ Kent, _(where now I reside by the favour of the Parliament)
from the imminent ruine and destruction plotted against them by their
most implacable enemies; so the same God who hath led your Excellency
through so many difficulties towards the settlement of the peace of
this Kingdom, and reduction of_ Ireland, _will, after the perfecting
thereof (which God of his mercy hasten) direct your Noble thoughts to
employ the Souldiery of this Kingdom upon such just and honourable
designes in those parts of_ America, _as their want of action at
home may neither be a burden to themselves nor the Kingdome. To your
Excellency therefore I offer a_ New-World, _to be the subject of your
future pains, valour, and piety, beseeching your acceptance of this
plain but faithfull relation of mine, wherein your Excellency, and
by you the English Nation shall see what wealth and honor they have
lost by one of their narrow hearted Princes, who living in peace and
abounding in riches, did notwithstanding reject the offer of being
first discoverer of_ America; _and left it unto_ Ferdinando _of_
Arragon, _who at the same time was wholly taken up by the Warrs, in
gaining of the City and Kingdome of_ Granada _from the_ Moores; _being
so impoverished thereby, that he was compelled to borrow with some
difficulty a few Crowns of a very mean man, to set forth_ Columbus
_upon so glorious an expedition. And yet, if time were closely followed
at the heels, we are not so farr behinde, but we might yet take him by
the fore-top. To which purpose, our Plantations of the_ Barbadoes, St.
Christophers, Mems, _and the rest of the_ Caribe-Islands, _have not
onely advanced our journey the better part of the way; but so inured
our people to the Clime of the_ Indies, _as they are the more inabled
thereby to undertake any enterprise upon the firm Land with greater
facility. Neither is the difficulty of the attempt so great, as some
may imagine; for I dare be bold to affirm it knowingly, That with
the same pains and charge which they have been at in planting one of
those pettie Islands, they might have conquer'd so many great Cities,
and large Territories on the main Continent, as might very well merit
the title of a Kingdome. Our Neighbors the_ Hollanders _may be our
example in this case; who whilst we have been driving a private Trade
from Port to Port, of which we are likely now to be deprived, have
conquered so much Land in the_ East _and_ West-Indies, _that it may
be said of them, as of the_ Spaniards, That the Sunn never sets upon
their Dominions. _And to meet with that objection by the way,_ That the
Spaniard being intituled to those Countries, it were both unlawfull
and against all conscience to dispossess him thereof. _I answer, that
(the Popes donation excepted) I know no title he hath but force,
which by the same title, and by a greater force may be repelled. And
to bring in the title of_ First-discovery; _to me it seems as little
reason, that the sailing of a_ Spanish _Ship upon the coast of_ India,
_should intitle the King of_ Spain _to that Countrey, as the sayling
of an_ Indian _or_ English _Ship upon the coast of_ Spain, _should
intitle either the_ Indians _or_ English _unto the Dominion thereof. No
question but the just right or title to those Countries appertains to
the Natives themselves; who, if they shall willingly and freely invite
the_ English _to their protection, what title soever they have in
them, no doubt but they may legally transferr it or communicate it to
others. And to say, That the inhumane butchery which the_ Indians _did
formerly commit in sacrificing of so many reasonable Creatures to their
wicked Idols, was a sufficient warrant for the_ Spaniards _to divest
them of their Country; The same argument may by much better reason be
inforced against the_ Spaniards _themselves, who have sacrificed so
many millions of_ Indians _to the Idol of their barbarous cruelty, that
many populous Islands and large Territories upon the main Continent,
are thereby at this day utterly uninhabited, as_ Bartholomeo de las
Casas, _the_ Spanish _Bishop of_ Guaxaca _in_ New-Spain, _hath by his
Writings in Print sufficiently testified. But to end all disputes of
this nature; since that God hath given the earth to the sons of Men
to inhabite; and that there are many