"I arrived at the Indies with the fleet which the Sovereigns, our Lord and Lady, sent me. I had not been there twenty days when I discovered by my own experience that the whole of that land is an islan…"

"The people here are simple in war-like matters... I could take them all with 50 men and subjugate them to my will."

"Gold is most excellent; gold is treasure, and he who possesses it does all he wishes to in this world."

"I vow that I will never again set foot on land unless it is to return to Spain."

"They are so ingenuous and free with all they have, that no one would believe it who has not seen it; of anything they have, if you ask them for it, they never say no; rather, they invite you to share …"