had tried to pronounce the clucking many-syllabled word. "Is it like
anything you have seen, Vespucci?"

The Italian had been comparing it with a similar village he had seen on
his first voyage, on a part of the coast called Lariab. He had an
instinct, however, that it would not be well to mix his own discoveries
with those of the present expedition.

"It is rather like Venice," he said demurely.

"That is the name for it," cried Ojeda in high
delight,--"Venezuela--Little Venice!"

"It would be interesting," observed Vespucci, "to know what names they
are giving to us. How they stare!"

The people of the village on stilts were evidently as much astonished at
the strangers as the strangers were at them. They fled into their houses
and raised the draw-bridges. The men in a squadron of canoes which came
paddling in from the sea were also terrified. But this did not last
long. The warriors went into the forest and returned with sixteen young
girls, four of whom they brought to each ship. While the white men
wondered what this could mean, several old crones appeared at the doors
of the houses and began a furious shrieking. This seemed to be a signal.
The maidens dived into the sea and made for the shore, and a storm of
arrows came from the canoemen. The fight, however, was not long, and the
Spaniards won an easy victory, after which they had no further trouble.
They found a harbor called Maracaibo, and twenty-seven Spaniards at the
earnest request of the natives were entertained as guests among the
inland villages for nine days. They were carried from place to place in
litters or hammocks, and when they returned to the ships every man of
them had a collection of gifts--rich plumes, weapons, tropical birds and
animals--but no gold. The monkeys and parrots were very amusing, but
they did not make up, in the minds of some of the crew, for the gold
which had not been found.

Ojeda returned from an exploring journey one day with a ruffled temper.
"A gang of poachers," he sputtered,--"rascally Bristol traders. We shall
have to teach these folk their place."

"What really happened?" Vespucci inquired privately of Juan de la Cosa.
The old mariner's eyes twinkled.

"It was funny. You see, we were coming down to the shore, ready to
return to the ships, when we spied an English ship and some sailors on
the beach, dancing after they'd caught their fish and eaten 'em. Up
marches our young caballero with hand on hilt and asks w