CHAPTER LVII

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How they went to Tira.

Though all had toiled in that action, and though all deserve a meed of praise and honour for the same, yet principally the aforesaid Diego Gonçalvez and that man of Lagos who passed over with him are to be praised, for the reason that I have already mentioned: for to the beginnings of an enterprise the greater praises are due. And, in fact, it was so regarded by the Infant, for he bestowed a rich reward upon them afterwards, as he was ever accustomed to do upon those who served him well. So, when those captured Moors had been brought on board the ships, our men began at once to ask of some of them, separately, where they thought they would find the others that had escaped from the company; and our prisoners made reply that their opinion was that the rest would be at a settlement called Tira, which was on the mainland by the sea-shore, about eight leagues distant. And considering that the earlier they went after them the more profitable their going would be, for they imagined that such a short time having elapsed they would find the Moors quite off their guard--for this reason, then, they set off at once that very night with three caravels, the smallest and lightest in their fleet, and all the other people went in the boats, taking with them two Moorish women to show them the way. And in the first quarter of the night they arrived at a point where they left their ships and landed; and because they did not conceive it yet to be a fit time to start, they rested there till the dawn began to break, and by the aid of its brightness they began to make their way. And coming to a crossing of a little arm of the sea, they fell in with a multitude of canoes, among which was the boat which the Moors had taken from the caravels of Lisbon, but it was now almost broken up. However, they took it with them to carry back to the caravels. And passing on, they fell in with a Moor, whom they killed--as I believe because he himself sought the way to it. And so they arrived over against Tira and two other villages, but they did not find in these anything that they sought, since the Moors had all fled. And so they had to turn back to the caravels, and thence they passed over to Tider, where they rested by reason of the water that was there. While they were staying there, the captains bade some of them go for asses, that the weak ones might return on them to the ships; and while these were carrying out what had been commanded them, they met with five Moors, whom they took with but little trouble. And so being returned, Lançarote said that as it was now late they should rest for that night, and that on the next day he wished to discuss certain matters with them, which they would know then.

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