Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 2).djvu/189

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DÍAZ
DICK
169

rounded by a large number of Indians, and, not- withstanding his valiant defence, would have been crushed had lie not at the critical nu)nient slain the principal chief in the midst of his followers, whereupon the enemy fled, and ever afterward they retreated before the Spanish troops when they saw Diaz. In the same year, being in the advance guard with Vasco Guevarra and three soldiers, he was surrounded and furiously attacked by Indians, and only by a desperate fight succeeded in saving himself and joining the main army. When Velal- cazar tried to discover the hiding-place of the im- mense treasure that Ruminahui was said to possess, this cacique, by skilful movements, evaded the Spanish attack ; but while he was on the march to surprise Quito, Diaz, with sixty cavalry-men, over- took and engaged him till Velalcazar with his force and his allies, the Canari Indians, could come up, and routed him with great loss, so that Ruminahui took refuge in the Yumbo mountains, abandoning his train with a part of the treasure. When the province of Quito was invaded, in March, 1534, by the forces of Pedro Alvarado from Guatemala. Al- magro, by order of Pizarro, marched with Velal- cazar's forces to defend the territory in July, but, desiring to avoid strife lietween Spanish forces, he sent Ruy Diaz with Bartolome de Segovia and Diego Agllero to make pacific proposals to Alvara- do, and Diaz obtained a settlement, signed by Al- magro and Alvarado, 26 Aug., by which Alvarado turned over his forces to Almagro and returned to Guatemala. When Pizarro resolved to build near the coast a city destined to be the capital of the Spanish possessions in Peru, he sent an expedition under Diaz to explore the territory of the cacique of the valley of the Rimac, and Diaz, finding the country fertile and well adai)ted for the purpose, made a favorable report to Pizarro, who ordered a city to be built on the spot designated by Diaz, and on 18 Jan., 1535, the foundation-stone of the city of Los Reyes (now Lima) was laid. When the dissension between Pizarro and Almagro concern- ing the boundary of their respective governments began, Diaz was in that city, and, as a follower of Almagro, sustained the governor, Hernando de Soto. On the departure of Almagro for his expe- dition to Chili in 1535, he ordered Diaz to go to Lima to recruit soldiers, and follow him with these forces. Diaz soon joined Almagro with his troops, and participated in the campaign in Chili. On the latter's return in the beginning of 1537, he, wishing to establish an alliance with Manco Inca, who had risen against Pizarro, sent Riiy Diaz witlr other officers as envoy to the Indian prince, who, regarding all Spaniards as his natural enemies, retained the commissioners as prisoners, tied them naked to a stake, painted and pelted them with fruit and mud, subjected them to all kinds of indignities, and forced them to drink large quantities of the Indian intoxicating liquor, chicha. Almagro, once in possession of Cuzco, 18 April, 1537, began hostilities against Manco Inca. During the obstinate and relentless warfare that Orgonez waged against Manco Inca till the final destruction of his hosts, Diaz took advantage of a favorable opportunity to escape, and joined Or- gonez's forces. He continued to fight for Almagro against Pizarro's attack, and was present at the victory of Abancay, 12 July, 1537, the advance to Chincha in September, and the retreat to Cuzco in November. In the unfortunate battle of Salinas, 26 April, 1538, Diaz was in command of the escort bearing the royal standard, and, after the defeat of Almagro's forces, Ruy Diaz was overtaken in his flight by Pizarro's soldiers, and killed.


DÍAZ, Sebastian, clergyman, b. in Santiago, Chili, in 1740; d. there in 1812. He was a Do- minican, A'ersed in all the sciences of his time, and master of the principal ancient and modern lan- guages. He assisted in founding the convent of OurLady of Bethlehem, Santiago, and became its pi'ior in 1781. He was again elected in 1784, and flnished the buildings that his predecessor had not been able to complete. His principal works are "Noticia general de las cosas del Mundo " ; " Tra- tado contra la falsa Piedad " ; " Manual Dogmati- co " ; " Vida del Padre Manuel Acufia " ; and " Vi- da de Sor Maria de la Purificacion Valdes."


DIBBLE, Sheldon, missionary, b. in Skaneate- les, N. Y., 26 Jan., 1809 ; d. in Lahainaluna, Ha- waiian islands, 22 Jan., 1845. He was graduated at Hamilton cuUege in 1827, and at Auburn theologi- cal seminary in 1830 ; was ordained at Utica, N. Y., 6 Oct., 1830, and sailed from New Bedford for Honolulu. 28 Dec, 1830, arriving on 9 June, 1831, with the fourth company of missionaries to the Hawaiian islands. He was stationed at Hilo until 1836 ; but, his health not being good, he was as- signed to the seminary at Lahainaluna, on the isl- and of Maui. Here his wife, Maria M. Tomlinson, of Troy, N. Y^, b. in April, 1808, died 20 Feb., 1837. On 20 Nov. of that year Mr. Dibble sailed for the United States, where he made an extended tour, delivering lectures upon the islands and the mis- sionary work. An abstract of these was published under the title " Hawaiian History " (New York, 1838). He married Antoinette Tomlinson, of Man- lius, N. Y., and returned with her to his station, sailing from New York, 9 Oct., 1839. Mr. Dibble was among the foremost of the mission educators. He translated a part of the Old Testament, pre- pared eight text-books on grammar, natural his- tory, and scripture history, in the Hawaiian lan- guage, and wrote a " History of the Sandwich Isl- ands Mission " (New York, 1839), and a " History of the Sandwich Islands " (Lahainaluna, 1843), which have peculiar value as authentic history.


DIBRELL, George Gibbs, soldier, b. in White county, Tenn., 12 April, 1822 ; d. in Sparta, Tenn., 9 May, 1888. His school education was supple- mented by one term at East Tennessee university. He was a farmer and merchant, was elected to the constitutional convention of Tennessee, on the union ticket, in 1861, and to the legislature of Tennessee in August. Entering the Confederate army as a private, he was elected lieutenant-colo- nel, and was promoted colonel and brigadier-gen- eral of cavalry in 1864. He was detailed to escort the executive officers and treasure of the Confeder- ate government after the evacuation of Richmond, and took charge of the archives at Greensboro, N. C, after the surrender of Lee's army. He was a member of the constitutional convention of Ten- nessee in 1870, and was five times elected a repre- sentative from that state in congress, serving from 6 Dec, 1875, till 4 March, 1885.


DICK, James T., artist, b. in New York citv in 1834; d. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 19 Jan., 1868. "lie was the son of A. L. Dick, whose engraving of " The Last Supper " was regarded as a superior work of art. At the age of fourteen his son gained prizes awarded by the Manchester, England, acade- my of design. He was one of the originators of the Brooklyn art-school and a founder of the Academy of design. Among his best efforts are " Cooling Off," " Leap-Frog," and " At Mischief."


DICK, Robert, inventor, b. in Bathgate, Scotland, 12 Jan., 1814; d. in Buffalo, N. Y., 10 Dec. 1890. At seven he came with his father's family to Canada. A short time after their arrival, while