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were described as spacious and well appointed. About half of them were
of masonry and tile and the remainder of boards and thatch. There were
also many attractive country estates surrounding the city.

The day following his landing De Soto formally assumed his authority as
Governor, and Bartolome de Ortiz became Alcalde mayor of Santiago.
Scarcely had he done this, however, when news came that a French corsair
had attacked Havana, ransacked the church, and burned a number of
houses; after which he had sailed away. De Soto at once sent Mateo
Aceituna to the scene, with a company of soldiers and artisans, with
instructions to rebuild the houses and then to begin the construction of
a fort which would serve as an adequate defence for the town. Having
done this, he sent Lady Isabel, escorted by his nephew Don Carlos, to
Havana by sea, with a strong squadron, while he himself with the
remainder of his company set out on horseback for a tour of the islands.
He first went to Bayamo, and thence to Trinidad, and Puerto Principe.
From the latter place he went in a canoe to the great country estate of
Vasco Porcallo de Figueroa at Camaguey, there to get news of Lady
Isabel's arrival at Havana. Thence he proceeded to Sancti Spiritus,
which at that time was a place of only about thirty houses. Half of his
company landed there, and half went on to Trinidad, which was a still
smaller place of not more than twenty houses, though it contained a
hospital for the poor, the only such institution on the whole Island.
Thence he proceeded to Havana without finding another town or settlement
of any kind on the entire road.

During his stay in Havana De Soto deprived Nunez Tobar of his rank as
Captain-General and gave it instead to Vasco Porcallo de Figueroa,
because Tobar had made love to Dona Isabel's lady-in-waiting, the
daughter of the Governor of Gomera, and indeed had seduced her. In
spite, or perhaps because of this punishment Tobar thereupon married the
girl and afterward joined De Soto's expedition to Florida in a
subordinate capacity.

There can be no question that Hernando de Soto came to Cuba with a
prestige far surpassing that of any of his predecessors. He was in the
prime of manhood and at the height of his fame. He had been the hero of
great adventures and of marvellous achievements, and was possessed of
great wealth. He was not only governor of Cuba but also Adelantado of
Florida, which meant all the lands at the north o