Little progress was made, the country being difficult of access and the Jaguncoes laying ambuscades at every available place.
They were poor marksmen, and had but little skill in laying ambuscades.
As there was no gold in the country the number of settlers was small, the loose tribal organization of the natives made it impossible to inflict a vital defeat on them, and the mountainous and thickly wooded country lent itself admirably to a warfare of surprises and ambuscades.