[ The Rio de la Plata. ]
From this town there come every year four or five caravels to Bahia20 in Brasil, and to Angola in Africa, which bring great store of treasure, which is transported overland out of Peru into the River of Plate. There Abraham Cocke, desirous to make his voyage, took some of the Dolphin’s men into his ship, and sent the Dolphin home again, which had not as yet made any voyage. This Portugal merchant carried us to a place in this island, where there was a banished man,21 which had planted great store of plantains, and told us that we might, with this fruit, go to the River of Plate: for our bread and our victuals were almost all spent.
With this hard allowance we departed from this island, and were six-and-thirty days before we came to the Isle of Lobos Marinos,22 which is in the mouth of the River of Plate. This island is half a mile long, and hath no fresh water, but doth abound with seals and sea-morses,23 in such sort that our light-horseman could not get on shore for them, without we did beat them with our oars: and the island is covered with them. Upon these seals we lived some thirty days, lying up and down in the river, and were in great distress of victuals. Then we determined to run up to Buenos Aires, and with our light-horseman to take one of the pinnaces that rid at the town. And, being so high up the river as the town, we had a mighty storm at south-west,24 which drove us back again, and we were fain to ride under the Isla Verde25—that is, the green island—which is in the mouth of the river on the north side.