_ 24 _ show them that we were powerful enough to inflict injury on them, but that we did not wish to do so. When they saw this, they bunched together and ran away. So as to avoid the possibility of some of them being killed, the captain ordered all our men into the boats. When we were all assembled, the captain gave instructions to fire off two bombards that were in the stern of the ship so as to make it clear to them that we were capable of hurting them but chose not to. The natives were all seated on the beach at the edge of the forest. When they heard the bombards firing, they began to flee into the bush with such haste that they left behind the skins with which they were covered and their weapons. After retreating to the forest, two of them returned to collect them. Then they joined the others and took to their heels, disappearing over the brow of the hill with their cattle. The oxen of this country are enormous like those of the Alentejo, and extremely fat and tame. They are gelded and some of them are without horns. On the fattest of them, the negroes place some saddles made of wood, just like they do in Castile, with some poles in the form of a litter on top of them, upon which they ride. They stick a plough handle through the nostrils of those they want to sell and lead them by it.
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