de
Ocampo was perfectly satisfactory to Garay, and he marched his troops
close up to the town of Santisteban; but Vallejo being informed that a
small detachment of the latter was strolling heedlessly about the large
and beautiful township of Nechaplan, he sent out a body of his own men
to attack them, who captured above forty of their numbers, and brought
them in prisoners to Santisteban, which, it appears, was the very thing
these men had desired. Garay was greatly incensed at this, demanded
Vallejo to deliver up the men to him again, and threatened, unless he
complied, to punish him by virtue of the royal authority with which he
was vested. Vallejo, however, answered, that his reason for seizing
these men was, because they were marching about the country without any
legal authority, and had plundered the inhabitants: and that he
(Vallejo) should act up to Cortes' instructions until he received some
especial command from his majesty to the contrary; adding, that he must
again request him not to allow his men to plunder and ill-treat his
majesty's subjects.

While this dispute was going on, father Olmedo, with Alvarado and the
other officers, arrived in Santisteban; and as Gonzalo de Ocampo was at
that time alcalde major of Mexico, it was his duty to give Garay notice
to quit that territory, of which the government had been conferred upon
Cortes by his majesty. Several days were spent in these negotiations,
which were carried on by word of mouth, between the two parties, by
father Olmedo, and Garay began to discover that numbers of his men
deserted to Vallejo, that Cortes' officers were accompanied by a
considerable body of horse and musketeers, and that they daily increased
in numbers. Two of his vessels had been lost in a heavy storm, and the
rest lay at anchor in the mouth of the harbour, and were summoned by
Vallejo to run in, otherwise he should be obliged to treat them as
corsairs; to which the captains replied, that it was no business of his
where they anchored their vessels, and he might keep his commands to
himself.

Garay, who greatly feared the good fortune which always attended Cortes'
arms, durst not take any decisive step; while, on the other hand, Ocampo
of Mexico, Alvarado, and Sandoval were carrying on their secret
negotiations with his troops, but particularly with the captains of the
vessels, with some of whom they came to a secret understanding that they
should run into the harbour and declare for