Hernando de Soto

e tanto q viera partio pera Cutifachiqui, no caminho se tomaram tres indios, os quaes dissera que a senora daqlla terra tinha ja dos christãos noticia e os estaua esperado em hú pouo seu. Ho gouernador por hú delles lhe mandou oferecer sua amizade e fazerlhe saber como hia pera la, ho gouernador chegou e logo viera pera elle quatro almadias, e hũa dellas vinha hua hirmã da cacica e chegando ao gouernador disse estas palavras. Excelẽte senor minha hirmã por mim mãda beijar as mãos a V. S. e dizerlhe q a causa porq ella nã vẽ em pessoa he parecer-lhe q mais ho serue qdando como queda dando ordẽ a q cõ brevidade se faça prestes todas as suas almadias pera que V. S. passe e q d'scanse porq logo será seruido. Ho Gouernador lhe deu os agardecimẽtos e ella se tornou pera outra parte do rio.

As soon as they had come, he set out for Cutifachiqui. On the way three Indians were taken. They said that the lady of that land already had news of the Christians and was waiting for them in one of her towns. Through one of them the governor sent to offer her his friendship and to let her know he was coming. When the governor arrived, four canoes came to him at once. In one of them came a sister of the cacica. She came up to the governor and spoke these words: "Excellent lord, my sister sends me to kiss Your Lordship's hands. She asks me to tell you why she does not come in person. She thinks she serves you better by staying where she is, giving orders to make all her canoes ready quickly so that Your Lordship may cross. Rest, for you will soon be served." The governor thanked her, and she went back to the other side of the river.

agora diremos de los llanos que es una tierra llana y espaçiosa que tiene en anchura mas de quatro cientas leguas por aquella parte entre las dos cordilleras la una la que atrabeso francisco uasques coronado a la mar del sur y la otra la que atrabeso la gente de don fernando de soto a la mar del norte entrando por la florida lo que de estos llanos se bio todo era despoblado y no se pudo ber la otra cordillera ni çerro ni çierra que tubiese de altura tres estados con andar doçientas y sinquenta leguas por ellos atrechos se hallauan algunas lagunas redondas como platos de un tiro de piedra de ancho y mayores algunas dulçes y algunas de sal

Now we will tell about the plains. They are a flat, wide land, more than four hundred leagues across in that region. They lie between two mountain ranges. One is the range on the South Sea side, which Francisco Vázquez Coronado crossed. The other is the range on the North Sea side, which Don Fernando de Soto's people crossed, coming in by way of Florida. All of the plains that we saw were without settlements. We could not see the other range, or any hill or ridge even three times a man's height, though we traveled two hundred and fifty leagues across them. Here and there we found round ponds, shaped like plates, a stone's throw wide or more. Some were fresh water and some salt.