Hernandarias, it must be said, makes one of the most remarkable figures
of all the high officials of the River Plate. He proved himself a
strenuous warrior, and, anxious to extend his frontiers, he carried on a
tremendous warfare with the fierce Indians of the Pampa. The Governor,
moreover, was gifted with no little foresight and practical common
sense. Finding it impossible to establish a footing among the implacable
natives of Uruguay, he caused a number of cattle, horses, and sheep to
be sent across the great river, and to be let loose among the rich
pastures of that country. He knew, he said (and it was not long before
the future proved him right), that this land would one day be the
property of the Spaniards, and thus these cattle which he sent over
would, when the time came, be found to have multiplied themselves to an
infinite extent, which, of course, fell out as he had anticipated.
Hernandarias, moreover, led an expedition to the south, and endeavoured
to take possession of Patagonia. Here, after various disasters, he
inflicted a severe defeat on the Indians; but few definite steps towards
the practical colonization of the far south appear to have been taken at
this period.
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