Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/81

70 TBH BOCK <M< AOOMA. described some uiimala, which from a picture thitfe one of them had painted on his skin, seemed to be coiws, although from the hides, this did not seem poBsibler^cause the hair was wooUy and snarled so that we could not tell what sort of skins they had. The general ordered Hernado de Alverado to take twenty companions and go with them, and gave them a commission for eighty days, after which he should return and give an account of what he had found. ' ' Captain Alvarado started on this journey and in five days reached a village, which was on a rock called "Acuco," having a population of about 200 men. These men were robbers, feared by the whole country round about. The vQlage was very strong,/ because it was up on a rock out of reach, having steep sides in every direction,'and so elevated that it was a very good musket that could throw a ball so high. There was only one entrance, by a stairway built by hand, which began at the top of a slope, around the foot of the rock. There was a broad stairway of about 200 steps, and at the top they had to go up about three times the height of a man, by means of holes in the rocks in which they put the points of their feet, holding on at the same time with their hands. So no army could possibly be strong enough to capture the village. On the top they had room to sow and store a large amount of corn, and cisterns to collect snow and water. These people came down to the plain ready to fight and would not listen to any arguments. They drew lines on the ground and determined to prevent our men from crossing these, but when they saw that they would have to fight they offered to