The woods
in the neighbourhood of the town sheltered numbers of discontented
Portuguese and Indians, who had collected stores and weapons, and had
hidden themselves in the recesses of the forests until the time came for
them to sally out for the attack. Several expeditions sent out by the
Dutch to break up these bands were unsuccessful. The Portuguese either
eluded them, or the Dutch fell into the ambushes prepared for them, and
suffered loss without being able to retaliate.
Every month the Portuguese grew stronger in numbers, and attacks were
now frequent on the Dutch isolated settlements, many of which were
captured and the inhabitants massacred. The Portuguese were determined
to surrender none of the advantages which the nature of the country
offered them, and thus the warfare still remained of a guerilla order,
and upon the sallying out of a formidable Dutch force, the Portuguese,
with their Indian allies, would disperse in the dense forests, and come
together again when the Dutch had concluded their march.
The retaliatory methods of the Dutch served to enrage the Portuguese
beyond all bearing. The Council of the Dutch West India Company issued a
proclamation to the effect that all women and children in the towns,
whose husbands and fathers were rebels, were to be evicted from their
houses and left to fend for themselves.
Pages:
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157