The most popular account of the Soto expedition is "The Florida of the Inca" written by Garcilaso de la Vega over a period of time extending from 1567 to 1599 and first published at Lisbon in 1605. It tells the story of the exploration in considerable detail and with literary style.

The book was the first account of the adventures to be widely read. The eyewitness accounts, though written earlier, did not have the romantic, adventuresome appeal of "The Florida."

Garcilaso was born of a Spanish conquistadore and an Inca princess in the very year Soto landed in Florida. The principal source of Garcilaso's book is never identified, though internal evidence points to Gonzalo Silvestre, a cavalier on the Soto invasion. Two other minor sources, however, are identified as Alonso de Carmona and Juan Coles, soldiers in the Soto army.

In general, Garcilaso's story confirms the main events recounted by the eyewitnesses, but not always in the same order. Garcilaso was handicapped by having to sort out information many years after the fact from old warriors drawing on memory. There are discrepancies in arithmetic and sequence obviously resulting from incomplete notes. For this reason, historians tend to discount Garcilaso when he conflicts with one of the eyewitnesses.

While observing this precaution, we can turn to a recent translation of "The Florida" by John and Jeannette Varner who have rendered the archaic Spanish into modern literary style, yet in keeping with the spirit of Garcilaso.

Garcilaso, of Indian blood, devotes much space explaining motives of the Spaniards and Indians who were engaged in an epic struggle. It is fascinating reading, but of no assistance in determining the factual

problem of locations. Quotations given in this chapter, therefore, are extensive but skip over Garcilaso's personal views.

In this account, preparation for the expedition indicates that Soto had a wider knowledge of the coast than the eyewitnesses reported:

Just as soon as Soto's ships came to Havana he ordered those men in the armada who were best acquainted with the sea to go in two brigantines under the command of Juan de Anasco and study the shores of Florida. They were to sail along the coast and note the creeks, ports, or bays that might lie in that direction.

At the end of that time, Anasco returned to Havana with a better documented account of what he had discovered and more information as to where ships might cast anchor and land. The Governor and all his people were now exceedingly pleased to have knowledge of definite ports where they would be able to disembark.

The significant contribution of these passages is the use of the plural for places to land. Apparently Soto had a choice of several ports where he might disembark with convenience and safety.

Of the actual landing, Garcilaso has very little to say:

Governor Hernando de Soto, who as we have said was sailing in search of Florida, first sighted land in that kingdom on the last day of May. He had been 19 days at sea because of unfavorable weather, but his ships now anchored in a good, deep bay which the Spaniards named the Bay of the Holy Spirit.

In being late afternoon when the armada arrived, no one disembarked, but on the following day, which was the first of June, some went ashore in small boats. They returned with their vessels loaded with grass for the horses and with many unripe grapes from vines found growing wild in the forests.