HISTORY
OF THE
CONQUEST OF PERU.
VOL. I.












Sam
i                                             i~~~~~~~~~~~~~......................~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~j




HISTORY
OF THE
CONQUEST OF PERU.
WITH A PRELIMINARY VIEW
OF THE
CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.
BY
WILLIAM H. PRESCOTT,
OiLRBStONDING MEMBER OF THB FRENCH INSTITUTI; OF THB ROYAL ACADEMT
OF HIfTORY AT MADRI, IO.,'ongesta cumulantur opes, orbisque rapinas
Aocipit."
CLAUDIAN, In Ruf., lib. i., v. 194.'So color de religion
Van a buscar plata y oro
Del encubierto tesoro."
LOPE DE VEGA, El Nuevo Mundo, Jorn...
IN s'WO VOLUMES.
VOLUME I.
NEW YORK:
HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS,
329 & 331 PEARL STRJEET,
FRANKLIN SQUARE.




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, by
WILLIAM H. PRESCOTT,
m the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the District of Massachusette




PREFACE.
THE most brilliant passages in the history of
Spanish adventure in the New World are undoubtedly afforded by the conquests of Mexico and
Peru, - the two states which combined with the
largest extent of empire a refined social polity, and
considerable progress in the arts of civilization.
Indeed, so prominently do they stand out on the
great canvas ofhistory, that the name of the one,
notwithstanding the contrast they exhibit in their
respective institutions, most naturally suggests that
of the other; and, when I sent to Spain to collect
materials for an account of the Conquest of Mexico,
I included in my researches those relating to the
Conquest of Peru.
The larger part of the documents, in both cases,
was obtained from the same great repository, —the
archives of the Royal Academy of History at Madrid; a body specially intrusted with the preserva



VI                 PREFACE.
tion of whatever may serve to illustrate the Spamnsh
colonial annals. The richest portion of its collection is probably that furnished by the papers of
Munoz. This eminent scholar, the historiographer
of the Indies, employed nearly fifty years of his
life in amassing materials for a history of Spanish
discovery and conquest in America. For this, as
he acted under the authority of the government,
every facility was afforded him; and public offices
and private depositories, in all the principal cities
of the empire, both at home and throughout the
wide extent of its colonial possessions, were freely
opened to his inspection. The result was a magnificent collection of manuscripts, many of which
he patiently transcribed with his own hand. But
he did not live to reap the fruits of his per
severing industry.  The first volume, relative to
the voyages of Columbus, was scarcely finished
when he died; and his manuscripts, at least that
portion of them which have reference to Mexico
and Peru, were destined to serve the uses of another, an inhabitant of that New World to which
they related.
Another scholar, to whose literary stores I am
largely indebted, is Don Martin Fernandez de Navarrete, late Director of the Royal Academy of




PREFACE.                vil
History. Through the greater part of his long life
he was employed in assembling original documents
to illustrate the colonial annals. Many of these
have been incorporated in his great work, "Coleccion de los Viages y Descubrimientos," which,
although far from being completed after the original
plan of its author, is of inestimable service to the
historian. In following down the track of discovery, Navarrete turned aside from the conquests
of Mexico and Peru, to exhibit the voyages of his
countrymen in the Indian seas. His manuscripts,
relating to the two former countries, he courteously
allowed to be copied for me. Some of them have
since appeared in print, under the auspices of his
learned coadjutors, SalvA and Baranda, associated
with him in the Academy; but the documents
placed in my hands form a most important contri
bution to my materials for the present history.
The death of this illustrious man, which occurred
some time after the present work was begun, has
left a void in his country not easy to be filled; for
he was zealously devoted to letters, and few have
done more to extend the knowledge of her colonial
history. Far from an exclusive solicitude for his
own literary projects, he was ever ready to extend
his sympathy and assistance to those of others




Viii               PREFACE.
His reputation as a scholar was enhanced by the
higher qualities which he possessed as a man, -
by his benevolence, his simplicity of manners, and
unsullied moral worth. My own obligations to him
are large; for from the publication of my first historical work, down to the last week of his life, 1
have constantly received proofs from him of his
hearty and most efficient interest in the prosecu
tion of my historical labors; and I now the more
willingly pay this well-merited tribute to his de
serts, that it must be exempt from all suspicion
of flattery.
In the list of those to whom I have been indebted for materials, I must, also, include the name
of M. Ternaux-Compans, so well known by his
faithful and elegant French versions of the Munoz manuscripts; and that of my friend Don Pascual de Gayangos, who, under the modest dress
of translation, has furnished a most acute and
learned commentary on Spanish-Arabian history, -
securing for himself the foremost rank in that difficult department of letters, which has been illumined by the labors of a Masdeu, a Casiri, and
a Conde.
To the materials derived from these sources, I
have added some manuscripts of an important




PREFACE.                 ix
character from the library of the Escurial. These,
which chiefly relate to the ancient institutions of
Peru, formed part of the splendid collection of Lord
Kingsborough, which has unfortunately shared the
lot of most literary collections, and been dispersed,
since the death of its noble author. For these 1
am indebted to that industrious bibliographer, Mr.
O. Rich, now resident in London. Lastly, I must
not omit to mention my obligations, in another
way, to my friend Charles Folsom, Esq., the learned librarian of the Boston Athenaeum; whose minute acquaintance with the grammatical structure
and the true idiom of our English tongue has enabled me to correct many inaccuracies into which
I had fallen in the composition both of this and
of my former works.
From  these different sources I have accumulated a large amount of manuscripts, of the most
various character, and from  the most authentic
sources; royal grants and ordinances, instructions
of the Court, letters of the Emperor to the great
colonial officers, municipal records, personal diaries
and memoranda, and a mass of private correspondence of the principal actors in this turbulent drama. Perhaps it was the turbulent state
of the country which led to a more frequent cor
VOL. I.        B




X                  PREFACE.
respondence between the government at home and
the colonial officers. But, whatever be the cause,
the collection of manuscript materials in reference to Peru is fuller and more complete than
that which relates to Mexico; so that there is
scarcely a nook or corner so obscure, in the path
of the adventurer, that some light has not been
thrown on it by the written correspondence of the
period. The historian has rather had occasion to
complain of the embarras des richesses; for, in the
multiplicity of contradictory testimony, it is not
always easy to detect the truth, as the multiplicity
of cross-lights is apt to dazzle and bewilder the
eye of the spectator.
The present History has been conducted on the
same general plan with that of the Conquest of
Mexico.   In an Introductory Book, I have endeavoured to portray the institutions of the Incas,
that the reader may be acquainted with the char
acter and condition of that extraordinary race, before he enters on the story of their subjugation.
The remaining books are occupied with the narrative of the Conquest. And here, the subject, it
must be allowed, notwithstanding the opportunities
it presents for the display of character, strange,
romantic incident, and picturesque scenery, does




PREFACE.                 Xi
not afford so obvious advantages to the historian,
as the Conquest of Mexico. Indeed, few subjects
can present a parallel with that, for the purposes
either of the historian or the poet. The natural
development of the story, there, is precisely what
would be prescribed by the severest rules of art.
The conquest of the country is the great end always in the view of the reader. From the first
landing of the Spaniards on the soil, their subse
quent adventures, their battles and negotiations,
their ruinous retreat, their rally and final siege, all
tend to this grand result, till the long series is
closed by the downfall of the capital. In the march
of events, all moves steadily forward to this consummation. It is a magnificent epic, in which the
unity of interest is complete.
In the " Conquest of Peru," the action, so far
as it is founded on the subversion of the Incas,
terminates long before the close of the narrative.
The remaining portion is taken up with the fierce
feuds of the Conquerors, which would seem, from
their very nature, to be incapable of being gathered
round a central point of interest. To secure this,
we must look beyond the immediate overthrow of
the Indian empire. The conquest of the natives
is but the first step, to be followed by the conquest




Xll                 PREFACE
ot the Spaniards, -the rebel Spaniards, themselves,
-till the supremacy of the Crown is permanent
ly established over the country. It is not till this
period, that the acquisition of this Transatlantic
empire can be said to be completed; and, by fix
ing the eye on this remoter point, the successive
steps of the narrative will be found leading to one
great result, and that unity of interest preserved
which is scarcely less essential to historic than
dramatic composition.  How   far this has been
effected, in the present work, must be left to the
judgment of the reader.
No history of the conquest of Peru, founded
on original documents, and aspiring to the credit
of a classic composition, like the "Conquest of
Mexico" by Solis, has been attempted, as far as
I am aware, by the Spaniards. The English possess one of high value, from the pen of Robertson,
whose masterly sketch occupies its due space in
his great work on America. It has been my object to exhibit this same story, in all its romantic details; not merely to portray the characteristic features of the Conquest, but to fill up the
outline with the coloring of life, so as to present
a minute and faithful picture of the times. For
this purpose, I have, in the composition of the




PREFACE.               xii
work, availed myself freely of my manuscript materials, allowed the actors to speak as much as
possible for themselves, and especially made frequent use of their letters; for nowhere is the heart
more likely to disclose itself, than in the freedom
of private correspondence.  I have made liberal
extracts from these authorities in the notes, both
to sustain the text, and to put in a printed form
those productions of the eminent captains and
statesmen of the time, which are not very accessible to Spaniards themselves.
M. Amedee Pichot, in the Preface to the
French translation of the " Conquest of Mexico,"
infers from the plan of the composition, that I
must have carefully studied the writings of his
countryman, M. de Barante. The acute critic does
me but justice in supposing me familiar with the
principles of that writer's historical theory, so ably
developed in the Preface to his " Dues de Bourgogne." And I have had occasion to admire the
skilful manner in which he illustrates this theory
himself, by constructing out of the rude materials
of a distant time a monument of genius that
transports us at once into the midst of the Feudal
Ages, -and this without the incongruity which
usually attaches to a modern-antique. In like man



XlV                PREFACE.
ner I have attempted to seize the characteristic
expression of a distant age, and to exhibit it in
the freshness of life. But in an essential particular, I have deviated from the plan of the French
historian. I have suffered the scaffolding to remain
after the building has been completed. In other
words, I have shown to the reader the steps of
the process by which I have come to my conclusions. Instead of requiring him to take my version of the story on trust, I have endeavoured to
give him a reason for my faith. By copious citations from the original authorities, and by such
critical notices of them as would explain to him
the influences to which they were subjected, I
have endeavoured to put him in a position for judging for himself, and thus for revising, and, if need
be, reversing, the judgments of the historian. He
will, at any rate, by this means, be enabled to
estimate the difficulty of arriving at truth amidst
the conflict of testimony; and he will learn to
place little reliance on those writers who pronounce
on the mysterious past with what Fontenelle calls
"a frightful degree of certainty," - a spirit the
most opposite to that of the true philosophy of
history.
Yet it must be admitted, that the chronicler




PREFACE.                 XV
who records the events of an earlier age has some
obvious advantages in the store of manuscript materials at his command, —the statements of friends,
rivals, and enemies, furnishing a wholesome coun
terpoise to each other; and also, in the general
course of events, as they actually occurred, affording the best commentary on the true motives of
the parties. The actor, engaged in the heat of
the strife, finds his view bounded by the circle
around him, and his vision blinded by the smoke
and dust of the conflict; while the spectator, whose
eye ranges over the ground from a more distant
and elevated point, though the individual objects
may lose somewhat of their vividness, takes in at
a glance all the operations of the field. Paradoxical as it may appear, truth founded on contem
porary testimony would seem, after all, as likely
to be attained by the writer of a later day, as
by contemporaries themselves.
Before closing these remarks, I may be permitted to add a few of a personal nature. In several
foreign notices of my writings, the author has been
said to be blind; and more than once I have
had the credit of having lost my sight in the composition of my first history. When I have met
with such erroneous accounts, I have hastened to




xvi                PREFACE.
correct them. But the present occasion affords me
the best means of doing so; and I am the more
desirous of this, as I fear some of my own remarks, in the Prefaces to my former histories, have
led to the mistake.
While at the University, I received an injury in
one of my eyes, which deprived me of the sight
of it. The other, soon after, was attacked by inflammation so severely, that, for some time, I lost
the sight of that also; and though it was subsequently restored, the organ was so much disordered
as to remain permanently debilitated, while twice in
my life, since, I have been deprived of the use of it
for all purposes of reading and writing, for several
years together. It was during one of these periods
that I received from Madrid the materials for the
"History of Ferdinand and Isabella," and in my
disabled condition, with my Transatlantic treasures
lying around me, I was like one pining from hunger in the midst of abundance. In this state, I
resolved to make the ear, if possible, do the work
of the eye. I procured the services of a secretary,
who read to me the various authorities; and in
time 1 became so far familiar with the sounds of
the different foreign languages (to some of which
indeed, I had been previously accustomed by a resi



PREFACE.               Xvii
dence abroad), that I could comprehend his reading without much difficulty. As the reader pro.
ceeded, I dictated copious notes; and, when these
had swelled to a considerable amount, they were
read to me repeatedly, till I had mastered their
contents sufficiently for the purposes of composition. The same notes furnished an easy means
of reference to sustain the text.
Still another difficulty occurred, in the mechanical labor of writing, which I found a severe trial to
the eye. This was remedied by means of a writing-case, such as is used by the blind, which enabled
me to commit my thoughts to paper without the
aid of sight, serving me equally well in the dark as
in the light. The characters thus formed made a
near approach to hieroglyphics; but my secretary
became expert in the art of deciphering, and a
fair copy-with a liberal allowance for unavoid
able blunders —-was transcribed for the use of the
printer. I have described the process with more
minuteness, as some curiosity has been repeatedly expressed in reference to my modus operandu
under my privations, and the knowledge of it mav
be of some assistance to others in similar circumstances.
Though I was encouraged by the sensible progVOl. I.        C




XVlll              PREFACE.
ress of my work, it was necessarily slow. But in
time the tendency to inflammation diminished, and
the strength of the eye was confirmed more and
more. It was at length so far restored, that I could
read for several hours of the day, though my labors
in this way necessarily terminated with the daylight.
Nor could I ever dispense with the services of a
secretary, or with the writing-case; for, contrary
to the usual experience, 1 have found writing a
severer trial to the eye than reading,-a remark,
however, which does not apply to the reading of
manuscript; and to enable myself, therefore, to revise my composition more carefully, I caused a
copy of the "History of Ferdinand and Isabella"
to be printed for my own inspection, before it was
sent to the press for publication. Such as 1 have
described was the improved state of my health
during the preparation of the "Conquest of Mexico"; and, satisfied with being raised so nearly
to a level with the rest of my species, I scarcely
envied the superior good fortune of those who
(i",u:d prolong their studies into the evening, and
the later hours of the night.
But a change has again taken place during the
last two years. The sight of my eye has become
gradually dimmed, while the sensibility of the nerve




PREFACE.                XIX
has been so far increased, that for several weeks
of the last year 1 have not opened a volume, and
through the whole time I have not had the use
of it, on an average, for more than an hour a
day. Nor can I cheer myself with the delusive
expectation, that, impaired as the organ has become, from having been tasked, probably, beyond
its strength, it can ever renew its youth, or be
of much service to me hereafter in my literary
researches.  Whether 1 shall have the heart to
enter, as I had proposed, on a new and more extensive field of historical labor, with these impediments, I cannot say. Perhaps long habit, and
a natural desire to follow up the career which I
have so long pursued, may make this, in a manner, necessary, as my past experience has already
proved that it is practicable.
From this statement-too long, I fear, for his
patience - the reader, who feels any curiosity about
the matter, will understand the real extent of my
embarrassments in my historical pursuits.  That
they have not been very light will be readily admitted, when it is considered that I have had but
a limited use of my eye, in its best state, and that
much of the time I have been debarred from the
Use of it altogether.  Yet the difficulties [ have




XX                PREFACE.
had to contend with are very far inferior to those
which fall to the lot of a blind man. I know of no
historian, now alive, who can claim the glory of
having overcome such obstacles, but the author of
"La Conquete de l'Angleterre par les Normands";
who, to use his own touching and beautiful language, "has made himself the friend of darkness "; and who, to a profound philosophy that
requires no light but that from within, unites a
capacity for extensive and various research, that
might well demand the severest application of the
student.
The remarks into which I have been led at
such length will, I trust, not be set down by the
reader to an unworthy egotism, but to their true
source, a desire to correct a misapprehension to
which I may have unintentionally given rise myself, and which has gained me the credit with
some —far from grateful to my feelings, since
undeserved-of having surmounted the incalculable obstacles which lie in the path of the blind
man.
BOSTON, April 2, 1847




GENERAL CONTENTS.
BOOK I.
NTRODUCTION. - VIEW OF THE CIVILIZATION OF THE
INCAS.
BOOK II.
DISCOVERY OF PERU.
BOOK III.
CONQUEST OF PERU.
BOOK IV.
CIVIL WARS OF THE CONQUERORS.
BOOK V.
SETTLEMENT OF THE COUNTRY
APPENDIX.








CONTENTS
OF
VOLUME FIRST.
BOOK I.
INTRODUCTION. - VIEW OF THE CIVILIZATION OF THE
INCAS.
CHAPTER I.
Page
PHYSICAL ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY. -SOURCES OF PERUVIAN
CIVILIZATION. - EMPIRE OF THE INCAS. - ROYAL FAMILY.
-  NOBILITY........     3
Extent of the Peruvian Empire......  4
Its Topographical Aspect.......  5
Unfavorable to Husbandry......  6
Natural Impediments overcome......  7
Source of Civilization.......  8
Children of the Sun....       9
OLher Traditions.....           10
Their Uncertainty........  11
Conquests of the Incas......   14
City of Cuzco.......          15
Fortress of Cuzco.......      16
Its remarkable Structure....... 18
Queen of the Inca.......       19
Heir-apparent..  2..
Order of Chivalry.......   21
Ceremonies of Admission.             22.
Inca a Despot.........   24
His Dress.                           25
Intercourse with the People.....  26
Progresses through the Country...... 27
Royal Palaces.......         28




xxiv             CONTENTS.
Page
Their gorgeous Decorations..         29
Gardens of Yucay........   30
All closed at the Inca's Death.       31
Obsequies of the Incas...            32
Their Bodies preserved....           33
Produced at Festivals.......   34
Inca Nobles.........  35
Their exclusive Privileges......  36
Curacas..........  37
Inca Nobility the highest....        38
CHAPTER II.
ORDERS OF THE STATE.-PROVISIONS FOR JUSTICE.,-DIVISION
OF LANDS. - REVENUES AND REGISTERS. - GREAT ROADS
AND POSTS. -MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY...40
Name of Peru.........   41
Divisions of the Empire....         42
Tribunals of Justice.......   43
Character of the Laws.......  44
Simple Administration of Justice....  46
Threefold Distribution of Lands...... 47
Division renewed yearly......48
Agrarian Law.......          49
The Land cultivated by the People..... 50
Appropriation and Care of the Llamas....51
Woollen Manufactures.......   52
Labor in Peru........     53
Registers and Surveys by Government.  55
Rotation of Labor......     56
Magazines of Products and Manufactures.  57
Taxation borne wholly by the People....  59
No Room for Progress....              60
No Pauperism.....                 61
Monuments of Peruvian Industry....  62
Great Roads......              63
Suspension Bridges.                   64
Caravansaries, or Tambos......    66
System  of Posts......            67
Relays of Couriers......          68
Military Policy of the Incas......  70




CONTENTS.             xxv
Page
Conquests in the Name of Religion..... 71
Peruvian Army....                 72
Arms and Armour........  73
Military Quarters and Magazines...  74
Lenient Policy in War.....        75
Religion of the Conquered Nations...  77
Disposition of the Conquered Territory...  78
Quichua Language.....           80
Mitimaes......                81
Unity of Purpose in Peruvian Institutions..  83
Domestic Quiet their Aim....     84
Religious Character of Peruvian Wars... 85
Singular Harmony in their Empire..  86
CHAPTER III.
PERUVIAN RELIGION. - DEITIES. - GORGEOUS TEMPLES. -FESTIVALS. VIRGINS OF THE SUN. -MARRIAGE. 87
Religion of the American Races..    88
Peruvian Notions of a Future Life..  89
Embalming and Burial...            90
Idea of God.........  91
Worship of the Sun.......  92
Inferior Deities........     93
Temple of the Sun at Cizco..        95
Its Richness and Splendor......  96
Temples of inferior Deities..       97
Utensils and Ornaments of Gold..    98
Proofs of ancient Magnificence...  100
High Priest.........  101
Sacerdotal Order........   102
Duties of Priests.....            103
Festival of Raymi........   104
Human Sacrifices rare....         105
Sacred Flame.....           107
Religious Ceremony....108
Virgins of the Sun....            109
Convents..........110
Brides of the Inca........   112
Marriage universal........ 113
Provisions for Marriage......  114
VOL. I.       D




xxvi            CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IV.
Page
EDUCATION.- QUIPUS. -ASTRONOMY. -AGRICULTURE. - AQUEDUCTS.- GUANO. -IMPORTANT ESCULENTS...116
Education in Peru........  117
Seminaries and Amautas.......118
Quipus and Quipucamayus......  119
Method of transmitting History......  120
Various Symbols of Thought......  121
Quipus the poorest.....        122
Traditional Minstrelsy....       123
Quichua Dialect.....           124
Theatrical Exhibitions....      125
Division of Time.....          126
Regulated by the Equinoxes....  127
Little Progress in Astronomy....  128
The Inca's Care of Agriculture..130
System  of Irrigation........ 131
Aqueducts.....                132
Terraces on the Sierra...133
Guano......              135
Substitute for the Plough..  136
Fairs..........  137
Variety of Products........ 138
Indian Corn.........  139
Cuca........            140
Potatoes........       142
CHAPTER V.
PERUVIAN SHEEP.- GREAT HUNTS. - MANUFACTURES. - MECHANICAL SKILL. - ARCHITECTURE. -CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.....  143
Advantages for Manufactures.      144
The Llama.........      145
Alpacas.......             146
Huanacos and Vicuifas.......  147
Great annual Hunts.......  148
Woollen Manufactures.......  149
Division of Mechanical Labor......  150
Extraordinary Dexterity in the Arts.....152




CONTENTS.              xxvil
Page
No Use of Iron.....               153
Gold and Silver.....                154
Architecture a Test of Civilization...  155
Peruvian Architecture...  156
Houses........            157
Their Simplicity of Construction...... 158
Adaptation to Climate.......   159
Comparison between the Inca and Aztec Races...161
In Policy and Religion.......   132
In Science.........     163
Peruvian and Eastern Empires......      164
The Incas perfect Despots....        166
Careful of the People....            167
No Free Agency in Peru.... 168
No Idleness or Poverty.......   169
Influence of Government on Character....171
Life and Works of Sarmiento....         175
And of Polo de Ondegardo..           177
BOOK II.
DISCOVERY OF PERU.
CHAPTER I.
ANCIENT AND MODERN SCIENCE. - ART OF NAVIGATION.MARITIME DISCOVERY. - SPIRIT OF THE SPANIARDS.POSSESSIONS IN THE NEW WORLD.- RUMORS CONCERNING
PERU......... 183
Introductory Remarks......   184
Progress in Navigation.                 187
Early Voyages of Discovery......       188
Discovery of America........189
Romantic Expectations....             190
Northern and Southern Adventurers... 192
Extent of Discovery.....            193
Balboa reaches the Pacific.....194
Colonial Policy.....                196




xXViii             CONTENTS.
Page
Pedro Arias de Avila....197
Foundation of Panama...                198
First Southern Expedition... 199
Rumors respecting Peru                     200
CHAPTER II.
FRANCISCO PIZARRO. - HIS EARLY HISTORY. -FIRST EXPE
DITION TO THE SOUTH. —DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS. —
SHARP ENCOUNTERS. -RETURN TO PANAMA. -ALMAGRO'S
EXPEDITION.....202
Francis Pizarro's Early Life...         203
He goes to Hispaniola.... 204
Various Adventures....                 205
He accompanies Pedrarias to Panama...    206
Southern Expeditions.....           07
Almagro and Luque....                   208
Their Union with Pizarro.......   209
First Expedition for Discovery...210
Pizarro takes Command of it......   211
Enters the River Biru.....212
Distresses on Shore                        212
Pursues hs Voyage along the Coast.      213
Heavy Tempests                             213
Puts back and lands...214
Great Sufferings of the Spaniards          215
Montenegro sent back for Supplies..    216
Indian Village..........   217
Great Distresses during his Absence... 218
He returns with Assistance                 219
Uncertainty of the Spaniards... 220
They proceed farther South..             221
Traces of Cannibalism.... 222
Pizarro reconnoitres the Country..       223
Fierce Conflict with the Natives... 224
Danger of Pizarro....225
He sends back his Vessel                  226
Adventures of Almagro                     227
He joins Pizarro......  228
Returns to Panama........    229




CONTENTS.               xxix
CHAPTER 111.
Page
THE FAMOUS CONTRACT. - SECOND EXPEDITION. - RUIZ EXPLORES THE COAST. - PIZARRO'S SUFFERINGS IN THE FORESTS. -ARRIVAL OF NEW RECRUITS. -FRESH DISCOVERIES
AND DISASTERS. - PIZARRO ON THE ISLE OF GALLO.. 230
Almagro coolly received by Pedrarias.....  230
Influence of Fernando de Luque......231
Narrow Views of the Governor.....   232
His subsequent History.... 234
Pizarro, Almagro, and Luque..            235
Famous Contract for discovering Peru... 236
Religious Tone assumed in it..           237
Motives of the Conquerors.......  238
Luque's Share in the Enterprise...      239
Preparations for the Voyage...240
Insufficiency of Supplies......  241
Sailing of the Armament.... 242
Almagro returns to Panama.....  243
The Pilot Ruiz explores the Coast...     244
Indian Balsas.........  245
Signs of higher Civilization..           246
Returns with Indian Captives..           246
Pizarro's Journey into the Interior....  247
Frightful Difficulties of the March..   248
Almagro returns with Recruits...... 249
They continue their Voyage......   250
Thickly settled Country.......251
Gold and Precious Stones......      252
Warlike Aspect of the Natives......    253
Deliberations of the Spaniards......  254
Dispute between Pizarro and Almagro..... 255
The latter returns to Panama......    256
Pizarro remains at the Isle of Gallo.....   257
His Followers discontented......   258
Send home a secret Letter......    259




xxx               CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IV.
Page
INDIGNATION OF THE GOVERNOR. - STERN RESOLUTION OF PIZARRO. - PROSECUTION OF THE VOYAGE. - BRILLIANT AS
PECT OF TUMBEZ. - DISCOVERIES ALONG THE COAST.RETURN TO PANAMA.-PIZARRO EMBARKS FOR SPAIN. 260
Pizarro ordered to return.......  261
He refuses........262
His bold Resolution........  263
Eleven adhere to him........264
Pizarro's heroic Constancy......  265
Left on the Isle of Gorgona.......  266
Efforts of Luque and Almagro......     268
Succours sent to Pizarro.......  269
He continues his Voyage.......  270
Enters the Gulf of Guayaquil..      271
Lands at Tumbez........  272
Kind Reception by its Inhabitants......  273
Visit of an Inca Noble......      274
Adventure of Molina........276
Pedro de Candia sent on Shore......  277
Kindly treated by the Natives......  278
Reports of the Riches of the Place.....  279
Joy of the Spaniards......        280
Pizarro again steers for the South.....  281
Tossed about by Tempests......    282
Touches at various Points of the Coast.  282
Splendid Accounts of the Peruvian Empire.. 283
Arrives at the Port of Santa......  284
Homeward Voyage........ 285
Lands at Santa Cruz........  286
Entertained by an Indian Princess......  287
Continues his Voyage to Panama.....  288
Joy and Triumph of his Associates.....  289
Coldness of the Governor.......  200
Pizarro goes as Envoy to Spain....291
Notice of Garcilasso de la Vega..     293
His Life and Writings......294
lCharacter of his Works.....  295




CONTENTS.              xxxi
BOOK III.
CONQUEST OF PERU.
CHAPTER 1.
Page
PIZARRO'S RECEPTION AT COURT. — IS CAPITULATION WITH
THE CROWN. -HE VISITS HIS BIRTHPLACE.- RETURNS TO
THE NEW WORLD. - DIFFICULTIES WITH ALMAGRO. — HIS
THIRD EXPEDITION.- RICH INDIAN BOOTY. — BATTLES IN
THE ISLE OF PUN....... 301
Pizarro in Spain........  302
Gracious Reception at Court....       303
Relates his Adventures to the Emperor.  304
His Capitulation with the Crown.        305
Dignities conferred on him...         306
Provisions in Behalf of the Natives.....307
Grasping Spirit of Pizarro....       308
He visits his Birthplace....... 310
The Pizarro Family........  311
His Brother Hernando........312
Obstacles to the Expedition......  313
Sails and crosses to Nombre de Dios.....314
Almagro greatly discontented......  315
A Rupture with Difficulty prevented.....316
Expedition fitted out at Panam......  318
Pizarro's final Voyage to Peru.....  319
Driven into Bay of St. Matthew.....  319
Lands his Forces.....                320
Plunders an Indian Village......  321
Division of Spoil......      322
He marches along the Coast....      323
Sufferings and Discontent of the Spaniards..324
They reach Puerto Viejo....         325
Joined by Reinforcements.......    36
Cross to Isle of PunD.......     327
Conspiracy of its Inhabitants....... 38
They attack the Spanish Camp....        329
Arrival of De Soto ewith Reecruits...., 30




xxxii             CONTENTS.
CHAPTER II.
Page
PERU AT THE TIME OF THE CONQUEST. — REIGN OF HUAYNA
CAPAC. -THE INCA BROTHERS. -CONTEST FOR THE EMPIRE. - TRIUMPH AND CRUELTIES OF ATAHUALLPA.. 332
The Inca Huayna Capac...                333
His Apprehensions respecting the White Men.. 334
Prognostics of Trouble in Peru...        335
Atahuallpa the Inca's Son.... 337
Shares the Empire with his Brother Huascar...  338
Causes of Jealousy between them.... 340
Commencement of Hostilities.....   341
Huascar's Forces defeated.... 342
Ravage of Canaris.....               343
Atahuallpa marches on Cuzco...... 344
His Victory at Quipaypan....           345
Capture of Huascar..... 346
Accounts of Atahuallpa's Cruelties..    347
Reasons for doubting their Accuracy. 348
Atahuallpa's Triumph......   350
His Want of Foresight......  351
CHAPTER III.
TIIE SPANIARDS LAND AT TUMBEZ. - PIZARRO RECONNOITRES THE
COUNTRY. - FOUNDATION OF SAN' MIGUEL. - MARCH INTO
THE INTERIOR. -EMBASSY FROI TIIE INCA. — ADVENTURES
ON THE MARC. - REACI THIE FOOT OF THE ANDES. 352
Spaniards pass over to Tumbez......    352
The Place deserted and dismantled.. 353
Its Curaca captured........   354
Pizarro reconnoitres thi Country......  356
His conciliating Policy......357
He founds San Miguel.......       358
Learns the State of the Kingdom....  360
Determines to strike into the Interior.  361
His probable Intentions.......  362
Boldness of the Enterprise....       363
Marches through the Level Country....    364
Hospitality of the Natives.....     365




CONTENTS.              XXXli
Page
Discontent in the Army.                   366
Pizarro's Expedient to quiet it..       367
Reception at Zaran.....              368
Envoy from the Inca...                   369
Courteously received by Pizarro..       370
His Message to the Inca......    371
De Soto's Expedition......372
His Accounts of the Indian Empire,...  374
March towards Caxamalca..               375
Contradictory Information.              376
Emissary to Atahuallpa.......     377
Effective Eloquence of Pizarro.....  379
CHAPTER IV.
SEVERE PASSAGE OF THE ANDES. — EMBASSIES FROM ATAHUALLPA. - THE SPANIARDS REACH CAXAMALCA. - EMBASSY TO
THE INCA. - INTERVIEW WITH THE INCA. -DESPONDENCY
OF THE SPANIARDS.......   381
March over the Andes.......    382
Fearful Passes of the Sierra...... 383
Toilsome and dangerous Ascent.....     383
Mountain Fortresses.....              384
The Army gain the Summit......    384
Indian Embassy.......      385
Lofty Tone of Pizarro.......    386
Return of the Spanish Envoy......387
Different Accounts f Atahuallpa.....  388
Bold Descent of the Cordilleras.....  389
Beautiful Valley of Caxamalca..     390
Imposing View of the Peruvian Camp...  391
Entrance into Caxamalca......     392
Description of the City.......     393
De Soto sent to Atahuallpa......      394
His Interview with the Monarch.      396
Haughty Demeanour of the Latter.        397
His Reply to Pizarro......         398
Soto's Exhibition of Horsemanship.     399
Gloomy Forebodings of the Spaniards....  401
Courage of Pizarro......        402
Daring Plan for seizing the Inca..    403
Reasons for its Adoption...            404
VOL. I.        E




xxxiv              CONTENTS.
CHAPTER V.
Pago
DESPERATE PLAN OF PIZARRO. - ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS. - HORRIBLE MASSACRE. - THE INCA A PRISONER.CONDUCT OF THE CONQUERORS. - SPLENDID PROMISES OF
THE INCA. -DEATH OF HUASCAR..... 407
Disposition of the Spanish Troops..... 408
Religious Ceremonies.......     409
Approach of the Inca...                410
Designs not to enter the Town......411
Disappointment of the Spaniards..       411
Atahuallpa changes his Purpose......412
Leaves his Warriors behind......  413
Enters the great Square.......414
Urged to embrace Christianity......  415
He rejects it with Disdain.......417
General Attack of the Spaniards..419
Bloody Massacre of the Peruvians..... 420
Seizure of Atahuallpa.......  422
Dispersion of his Army....... 423
Demeanour of the Captive Monarch.        425
His probable Designs..... 426
Courteously treated by Pizarro.          427
Indian Prisoners.........  429
Rich Spoils of the Inca.......  431
Magnificent Offer of Atahuallpa......  432
Accepted by Pizarro......433
Inca's Mode of Life in Captivity......  435
Refuses to embrace Christianity.....  436
Assassination of his Brother Huascar...  438
CHAPTER VI.
(GOLD ARRIVES FOR THE RANSOM.- VISIT TO PACHACAMAC.
DEMOLITION OF TIHE IDOL. - THE INCA'S FAVORITE GENERAL.- TIE INCA'S LIFE IN CONFINEMENT.- ENVOYS' CONDUCT IN CUZCO. —ARRIVAL OF ALMAGRO... 440
Slow Arrival of the Ransom.....  440
Rumors of an Indian Rising......441
Emissaries sent to Cuzco.....         442




CONTENTS.             xxv
Page
City and Temple of Pachacamac... 443
Hernando Pizarro's March thither..    444
Great Road of the Incas.......445
Herds of Llamas.......        445
Rich Cultivation of the Valleys......  446
Hernando's Arrival at the City.        447
Forcible Entry into the Temple.....    448
Horror of the Natives.....    448
Destruction of the Indian Idol......  449
Small Amount of Booty......            450
Hernando marches against Challcuchima.  451
Persuades him to visit Caxamalca..... 452
Interview of Atahuallpa with his General.... 453
The Inca's absolute Authority......  454
His Personal Habits and Appearance.....455
Return of the Emissaries from Cuzco.  456
Magnificent Reports of the City.....   457
They stripped the Gold from the Temples..  458
Their Insolence and Rapacity....    458
Return with Loads of Treasure...      459
Almagro arrives in Peru....           459
Brings a large Reinforcement....    460
Joins Pizarro's Camp........461
Superstitious Bodings of Atahuallpa...  462
CHAPTER VII.
IMMENSE AMOUNT OF TREASURE. - ITS DIVISION AMONG THE
TROOPS. - RUMORS OF A RISING.- TRIAL OF THE INCA. -
HIS EXECUTION.- REFLECTIONS..       463
Division of the Inca's Ransom....   464
Hernando takes the Royal Fifth to Spain..  465
His Jealousy of Almagro.....        466
Enormous Amount of the Treasure.. 467
Difficulties in its Distribution...... 469
Shares of the Pizarros.......470
Those of the Soldiers.......  471
Exclusion of Almagro and his Followers...  472
Preparations for the March to Cuzco... 473
The Inca demands his Liberty..     474
Equivocal Conduct of Pizarro.      475




xxxvi            CONTENTS.
Page
The Interpreter Felipillo.......  476
The Inca charged with exciting Insurrection...  476
His Protestations of Innocence.... 477
His Apprehensions.....            478
Fears and Murmurs of the Spaniards... 479
They demand the Inca's Death....      480
He is brought to Trial........481
Charges against him.....          482
Condemned to be burnt alive......  483
Some protest against the Sentence...  484
The Inca entirely unmanned.           484
His earnest Entreaties for Mercy...  485
Led to Execution.....             486
Abjures his Religion....            486
Perishes by the Garrote.... 487
His Character and Appearance....      488
Funeral Obsequies.....            489
Return of De Soto.....            490
His Indignation and Astonishment.....491
Reflections on the Inca's Treatment...  492
Responsibility of Pizarro.... 493
Motives of Personal Pique....        495
Views of Chroniclers respecting the Execution... 496
CHAPTER VIII.
DISORDERS IN PERU. - MARCH TO CUZCO. -ENCOUNTER WITH
THE NATIVES. CHALLCUCHIMA BURNT. ARRIVAL IN CUZco. -DESCRIPTION OF THE CITY.-TREASURE FOUND THERE 498
Authority of the Inca in Peru......498
Effects of Atahuallpa's Death.....499
New Inca appointed by Pizarro.....   500
March to Cuzco....           501
Formidable Mountain Passes......  502
Tedious and painful Route.....503
Conflict with the Indians......  504
Pizarro halts at Xauxa......     505
De Soto sent forward......       506
Furiously assaulted in the Sierra..... 506
Fierce Battle with the Indians..... 507
Apprehensions of the Spaniards.....  508




CONTENTS.              xxxvii
Page
Arrival of Succours.......   509
The Peruvians retreat......    510
Challcuchima accused of Conspiracy..    511
Death of the Inca Toparca..             512
Rich Vale of Xaquixaguana......    513
Trial and Condemnation of Challcuchima..  514
Burned alive before the Army....515
Spaniards arrive at Cuzco..516
Entrance into the Capital......         517
Its large Population......      518
Gorgeous Edifices.......    519
Its massive Fortress........     520
Temple of the Sun....                   522
Plunder of the Public Buildings..   523
Amount of Treasure secured.....          524
Its Division among the Troops.....        525
Its Effect upon the Spaniards.....    526








ILLUSTRATIONS.
PORTRAIT PREFIXED TO VOLUME FIRST.
I HAVE not found it easy to procure an authentic portrait of Francisco
Pizarro. There are some very old prints of him; and among them, one
in Thevet's collection, published in Paris, in 1580; but it is probably
not the most ancient. I know not how far the likeness can be depended
on. An artist who has made the comparison informs me, that it was
probably from one of these ancient prints that the portrait of Pizarro which
hangs up in the royal gallery of Versailles was originally taken. I have
been furnished with copies of both the print and the painting; but, not
confiding in their authenticity, I sent to Lima, where, in the viceregal
palace, the portraits of the Peruvian viceroys were preserved, in an unbroken series, from Pizarro to Pezuela, who closed the long train on the
breaking out of the War of Independence. A full-length copy was painted
for me in oils from the original, by one of the best artists in the capital.
But, if the copy does justice to the original, one can hardly doubt that
this latter was the work of one of the rude followers of Pizarro, who un
derstood the use of his lance much better than that of his brush. The
features have little expression, and the person is rigid. The Conqueror is
represented in a civil costume, - the capa y espada of a Spanish cavalier
of the early part of the sixteenth century. The cloak is of dark velvet;
and on both the cloak and the doublet is embroidered the scarlet cross of
the knightly order of St. James. In his hand is a letter, which the painter
might have spared, since the subject of his pencil could neither read nor
write. Perhaps it was to intimate that he could do so, that the cunning
artist introduced the letter, - by way of flattery to his commander.
PORTRAIT PREFIXED        TO VOLUME SECOND.
This print is taken from a portrait of Gasca, that hangs up in the
sacristy of the church of Santa Maria Magdalena, at Valladolid; which
was founded and liberally endowed by the President. A copy of this
picture was made for me by Don Valentin Carderera, an artist well known
by his beautiful illustrations of the ancient monuments of his country, and
to whose pencil I have been greatly indebted on several occasions. The
portrait of Gasca, in his judgment, though of a later date than the subject
of it, bears all the marks of authenticity. The sedate and modest expres




xl                     ILLUSTRATIONS.
sion of the countenance is in harmony with his character. The mitre and
the coat of mail intimate the opposite vocations to which he was called in
the course of his eventful career. This painting has not, to my knowledge,
been before engraved. In the same church of Santa Maria Magdalena is
a marble monument, raised over the remains of the President, with his
effigy, arrayed in his pontifical robes, reposing on the top of it. The whole
work is executed in the best style of art. But the image of death does not
furnish the most suitable subject for the illustration of a man's life.
ARMS OF PIZARRO
The stamp on the back of the volume represents the arms granted by
the Emperor Charles V. to Pizarro. The centre of the shield is occupied
with the ancient arms of his family, in which the common slate-stone is
introduced as emblematical of the family name. Pizarra, in Castilian,
means a slate. The Conqueror of Peru was allowed to quarter his own
arms with those of his sovereign, and we see the spread eagle holding in
his talons the pillars of Hercules, with the motto, inscribed on them, Plus
ultra, —which Pizarro did as much as any other Spaniard to verify.
Below is a city of silver, seated on a mountain, and the border of the shield
is garnished with figures representing small camels, -the llama of Peru,
and a legend bearing these words, " Caroli Cacsaris auspicio, et labore, ingenio, ac impensa Ducis Piiarro inventa et pacata." In the lower part of the
escutcheon is the figure of an Indian prince, designed for Atahuallpa;
while the heads of seven chiefs of the Inca race, held together by a chain
denote the triumphs of Pizarro. It is the same number of heads which, in
like manner, decorated the scutcheon of Cortes, -though with more sig
nificance. Other symbols intimate the rank of marquess, to which the
Conqueror was raised.








~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.-:-/'  ~       ~          I
--
-.........................~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-1
0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~0




BOOK FIRST.
INTRODUCTION.
VIEW OF THE CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.
VOL. I.        1








CONQUEST OF PERU.
BOOK I.
INTRODUCTION.
VIEW OF THE CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.
CHAPTER         I.
PHYSICAL ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY.- SOURCES OF PERUVIAN CIVILIZATION. - EMPIRE OF THE INCAS. - ROYAL FAMILY. - NOBILITY.
OF the numerous nations which occupied the great
American continent at the time of its discovery by
the Europeans, the two most advanced in power and
refinement were undoubtedly those of Mexico and
Peru. But, though resembling one another in extent
of civilization, they differed widely as to the nature
of it; and the philosophical student of his species
may feel a natural curiosity to trace the different
steps by which these two nations strove to emerge
from the state of barbarism, and place themselves
on a higher point in the scale of humanity. - In
a former work 1 have endeavoured to exhibit the
institutions and character of the ancient Mexicans,
and the story of their conquest by the Spaniards.
The present will be devoted to the Peruvians; and,




4            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK I.
if their history shall he found to present less strange
anomalies and striking contrasts than that of the
Aztecs, it may interest us quite as much by the
pleasing picture it offers of a well-regulated government and sober habits of industry under the patriarchal sway of the Incas.
The empire of Peru, at the period of the Spanish
invasion, stretched along the Pacific from about the
second degree north to the thirty-seventh degree of
south latitude; a line, also, which describes the western boundaries of the modern republics of Ecuador,
Peru, Bolivia, and Chili.     Its breadth cannot so
easily be determined; for, though bounded everywhere by the great ocean on the west, towards the
east it spread out, in many parts, considerably beyond the mountains, to the confines of barbarous
states, whose exact position is undetermined, or
whose names are effaced from the map of history.
It is certain, however, that its breadth was altogether
disproportioned to its length.1
The topographical aspect of the country is very
remarkable. A strip of land, rarely exceeding twenty leagues in width, runs along the coast, and is
hemmed in through its whole extent by a colossal
range of mountains, which, advancing from the
Straits of Magellan, reaches its highest elevation1 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap.  According to the last authority,
65. - Cieza de Leon, Cronica del the empire, in its greatest breadth,
Peru, (Anvers, 1554,) cap. 41.-  did not exceed one hundred and
Garcilasso de la Vega, Commen- twenty leagues. But Garcilasso's
tarios Reales, (Lisboa, 1609,) geography will not bear criticism.
Parte 1, lib. 1, cap. 8.




CH. I.]  PHYSICAL ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY.           5
indeed, the highest on the American continentabout the seventeenth degree south,2 and, after crossing the line, gradually subsides into hills of inconsiderable magnitude, as it enters the Isthmus of Panama. This is the famous Cordillera of the Andes, or
"copper mountains,"3 as termed by the natives,
though they might with more reason have been
called " mountains of gold."    Arranged sometimes
in a single line, though more frequently in two
or three lines running parallel or obliquely to each
other, they seem to the voyager on the ocean but
one continuous chain; while the huge volcanoes,
which to the inhabitants of the table-land look like
solitary and independent masses, appear to him only
like so many peaks of the same vast and magnificent
range. So immense is the scale on which Nature
works in these regions, that it is only when viewed
from a great distance, that the spectator can, in any
degree, comprehend the relation of the several parts
to the stupendous whole. Few of the works of
Nature, indeed, are calculated to produce impressions
of higher sublimity than the aspect of this coast, as
it is gradually unfolded to the eye of the mariner
sailing on the distant waters of the Pacific; where
2 According to Malte-Brun, it is enormous height of 25,250 feet,
under the equator that we meet and the Illimani to 24,300.
with the loftiest summits of this  3 At least, the word anta, which
chain.  (Universal Geography, has been thought to furnish the
Eng. trans., book 86.) But more etymology of Andes, in the Perurecent measurements have shown vian tongue, signified "copper."
this to be between fifteen and sev- Garcilasso, Com. Real.. Parte 1
enteen degrees south, where the lib. 5, cap. 15.
Nevado de Sorata rises to the




6            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BooK 1.
mountain is seen to rise above mountain, and Chimborazo, with its glorious canopy of snow, glittering
far above the clouds, crowns the whole as with a
celestial diadem.4
The face of the country would appear to be peculiarly unfavorable to the purposes both of agriculture
and of internal communication.        The sandy strip
along the coast, where rain rarely falls, is fed only by
a few scanty streams, that furnish a remarkable contrast to the vast volumes of water which roll down
the eastern sides of the Cordilleras into the Atlantic.
The precipitous steeps of the sierra, with its splintered sides of porphyry and granite, and its higher
regions wrapped in snows that never melt under
the fierce sun of the equator, unless it be from the
desolating action of its own volcanic fires, might
seem equally unpropitious to the labors of the
husbandman.       And   all communication      between
the parts of the long-extended territory might be
thought to be precluded by the savage character
of the region, broken up by precipices, furious torrents, and impassable quebradas, - those hideous
rents in the mountain chain, whose depths the
eye of the terrified traveller, as he winds along
4 Humboldt, Vues des Cordil- scenery of the Cordilleras, showing
leres et Monumens des Peuples the hand of a great painter, as well
Indigenes de l'Amerique, (Paris, as of a philosopher, make us regret
1810,) p. 106. - Malte-Brun, book the more, that he has not given
88.                          the results of his observations in
The few brief sketches which this interesting region as minutely
M. de Humboldt has given of the as he has done in respect to Mexico.




CH. I.]  PHYSICAL ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY.             7
his a6rial pathway, vainly endeavours to fathom.5
Yet the industry, we might almost say, the genius,
of the Indian was sufficient to overcome all these
impediments of Nature.
By a judicious system of canals and subterraneous
aqueducts, the waste places on the coast were refreshed by copious streams, that clothed them in fertility and beauty. Terraces were raised upon the
steep sides of the Cordillera; and, as the different
elevations had the effect of difference of latitude,
they exhibited in regular gradation every variety of
vegetable form, from the stimulated growth of the
tropics, to the   temperate   products   of a   northern clime; while flocks of llamas —-the Peruvian
sheep —wandered with their shepherds over the
broad, snow-covered wastes on the crests of the
sierra, which rose beyond the limits of cultivation.
An industrious population settled along the lofty regions of the plateaus, and towns and hamlets, clustering amidst orchards and wide-spreading gardens,
seemed suspended in the air far above the ordinary
elevation of the clouds.6     Intercourse was maintained between these numerous settlements by
means of the great roads which traversed the moun5 " These crevices are so deep,"  6 The plains of Quito are at the
says M. de Humboldt, with his height of between nine and ten
usual vivacity of illustration, " that thousand feet above the sea. (See
if Vesuvius or the Puy de Dome Condamine, Journal d'un Voyage
were seated in the bottom of them, a l'Equateur, (Paris, 1751,) p.
they would not rise above the level 48.) Other valleys or plateaus in
of the ridges of the neighbouring this vast group of mountains reach
sierra."  Vues des Cordilleres, a still higher elevation.
p. 9.




8          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BOOK I
tain passes, and opened an easy communication between the capital and the remotest extremities of
the empire.
The source of this civilization is traced to the
valley of Cuzco, the central region of Peru, as its
name implies.7  The origin of the Peruvian empire,
like the origin of all nations, except the very few
which, like our own, have had the good fortune to
date from a civilized period and people, is lost in
the mists of fable, which, in fact, have settled as
darkly round its history as round that of any nation, ancient or modern, in the Old World. According to the tradition most familiar to the European scholar, the time was, when the ancient races
of the continent were all plunged in deplorable barbarism; when they worshipped nearly every object
in nature indiscriminately; made war their pastime,
and feasted on the flesh of their slaughtered captives. The Sun, the great luminary and parent of
mankind, taking compassion on their degraded condition, sent two of his children, Manco Capac and
Mama Oello Huaco, to gather the natives into communities, and teach them the arts of civilized life.
The celestial pair, brother and sister, husband and
wife, advanced along the high plains in the neighbourhood of Lake Titicaca, to about the sixteenth degree
south. They bore with them a golden wedge, and
were directed to take up their residence on the spot
where the sacred emblem should without effort sink
7," Cuzco, in the language of nifies navel." Com. Real., Parte
the Incas," says Garcilasso, " sig- 1, lib. 1, cap. 18.




CH. I.]   SOURCES OF PERUVIAN        CIVILIZATION.           9
into the ground. They proceeded accordingly but a
short distance, as far as the valley of Cuzco, the
spot indicated by the performance of the miracle,
since there the wedge speedily sank into the earth
and disappeared for ever. Here the children of the
Sun established their residence, and soon entered
upon their beneficent mission among the rude inhabitants of the country; Manco Capac teaching the
men the arts of agriculture, and Mama Oellos initiating her own sex in the mysteries of weaving
and spinning. The simple people lent a willing ear
to the messengers of Heaven, and, gathering together in considerable numbers, laid the foundations
of the city of Cuzco. The same wise and benevolent maxims, which regulated the conduct of the
first Incas,9 descended to their successors, and under
8 Mama, with the Peruvians, Nausikaa, addressing her father,
signified " mother."  (Garcilasso, in the simple language which the
Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. modern versifiers have thought too
I.) The identity of this term with  simple to render literally.
that used by Europeans is a cu-   9 Inca signified king or lord.
rious coincidence. It is scarcely  Capac meant great or powerful.
less so, however, than that of the It was applied to several of the
corresponding word, papa, which  successors of Manco, in the same
with the ancient Mexicans denoted  manner as the epithet Yupanqui,
a priest of high rank; reminding us signifying rich in all virtues, was
of the papa, "pope," of the Italians. added to the names of several InWith both, the term seems to em- cas. (Cieza de Leon, Cronica,
brace in its most comprehensive cap. 41.- Garcilasso, Com. Real.,
sense the paternal relation, in which  Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 17.) The
it is more familiarly employed by  good qualities commemorated by
most of the nations of Europe. the cognomens of most of the PcNor was the use of it limited to ruvian princes afford an honorable,
modern times, being applied in the though not altogether unsuspicious,
same way both by Greeks and tribute to the excellence of their
Romans; " Ianrrra (fXE," says characters.
VOL. I.             2




10           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BooK I.
their mild sceptre a community gradually extended itself along the broad surface of the table-land, which
asserted its superiority over the surrounding tribes.
Such is the pleasing picture of the origin of the
Peruvian monarchy, as portrayed by Garcilasso de
la Vega, the descendant of the Incas, and through
him made familiar to the European reader.10
But this tradition is only one of several current
among the Peruvian Indians, and probably not
the one most generally received. Another legend
speaks of certain white and bearded men, who, advancing from the shores of Lake Titicaca, established an ascendency over the natives, and imparted
to them the blessings of civilization. It may remind us of the tradition existing among the Aztecs
in respect to Quetzalcoatl, the good deity, who with
a similar garb and aspect came up the great plateau from the east on a like benevolent mission to
the natives. The analogy is the more remarkable,
as there is no trace of any communication with, or
even knowledge of, each other to be found in the
two nations.1
The date usually assigned for these extraordinary
events was about four hundred years before the
10 Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 1, quista i Poblacion delPiru, MS., —
cap. 9-16.                  Declaracion de los Presidente 6
11 These several traditions, all Oydores de la Audiencia Reale del
of a very puerile character, are to Peru, MS., - all of them authoribe found in Ondegardo, Relacion ties contemporary with the ConSegunda, MS., —Sarmiento, Re- quest. The story of the bearded
lacion, MS., cap. 1, -Cieza de white men finds its place in most
Leon, Cronica, cap. 105,-Con- of their legends.




CH I.]    SOURCES OF PERUVIAN          CIVILIZATION.           11
coming     of the    Spaniards, or early       in  the   twelfth
century.12    But, however pleasing to the imagination,
and however popular, the legend of Manco Capac,
it requires but little reflection to show its improbability, even when divested of supernatural accompaniments. On the shores of Lake Titicaca extensive ruins exist at the present day, which the Peruvians themselves acknowledge to be of older date
than the pretended advent of the Incas, and to have
furnished them with the models of their architecture.'3 The date of their appearance, indeed, is
12 Some writers carry back the  o pared que se vee en este pueblo."
date 500, or even 550, years before  (Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 105.)
the Spanish   invasion.  (Balboa, See also Garcilasso, (Com. Real.,
Histoire du Perou, chap. 1. - Ye- Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 1,) who gives
lasco, Histoire du Royaume de Qui- an account of these remains, on the
to, tom. I. p. 81. - Ambo auct. ap. authority of a Spanish ecclesiastic,
Relations et Memoires Originaux   which might compare, for the marpour servir a l'Histoire de la D6- vellous, with any of the legends of
couverte de l'Amerique, par Ter- his order. Other ruins of similar
naux-Compans, (Paris, 1840.)) In  traditional antiquity are noticed by
the Report of the Royal Audi- HIerrera, (Historia General de los
ence of Peru, the epoch is more   Hechos de los Castellanos en las Ismodestly fixed at 200 years before  las y Tierra Firme del Mar Oceano,
the Conquest.   Dec. de la Aud. (Madrid, 1730,) dec. 6, lib. 6, cap.
Real., MS.                        9.)  McCulloh, in some sensible
13 "l Otras cosas ay mas que    reflections on the origin of the Pedezir deste Tiaguanaco, que passo  ruvian civilization, adduces, on the
por no detenerme: concluyedo que  authority of Garcilasso de la Vega,
yo para mi tengo esta antigualla the famous temple of Pachacamac,
por la mas antigua de todo el Peru. not far from Lima, as an example
Y assi se tiene que antes q los In- of architecture more ancient than
gas reynassen con muchos tiempos that of the Incas. (Researches, Phiestavan hechos algunos edificios losophical and Antiquarian, condestos: porque yo he oydo afirmar cerning the Aboriginal History of
a Indios, que los Ingas hizieron los America, (Baltimore, 1829,) p.
edificios grandes del Cuzco por la  405.)  This, if true, would dc
forma que vieron tener la muralla  much to confirm the views in oum




12            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.             [BooK 1.
manifestly irreconcilable with their subsequent history.   No account assigns to the Inca dynasty more
than thirteen princes before the Conquest. But
this number is altogether too small to have spread
over four hundred years, and would not carry back the
foundations of the monarchy, on any probable computation, beyond two centuries and a half,- an
antiquity not incredible in itself, and which, it may
be remarked, does not precede by more than half a
century the alleged foundation of the capital of Mexico. The fiction of Manco Capac and his sisterwife was devised, no doubt, at a later period, to
gratify the vanity of the Peruvian monarchs, and to
give additional sanction to their authority by deriving it from a celestial origin.
We may reasonably conclude that there existed
in the country a race advanced in civilization before
the time of the Incas; and, in conformity with
nearly every tradition, we may derive this race from
the neighbourhood of Lake Titicaca; 14 a conclusion
strongly confirmed by the imposing architectural
text. But McCulloh is led into an  6, -Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS., -
error by his blind guide, Rycaut, Zarate, Historia del Descubrimienthe translator of Garcilasso, for the to y de la Conquista del Peru,
latter does not speak of the temple lib. 1, cap. 10, ap. Barcia, Histoas existing before the time of the riadores Primitivos de las Indias
Incas, but before the time when  Occidentales, (Madrid, 1749,) tom.
the country was conquered by the  3.
Incas. Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib.  Inmost, not all, of the traditions,
6, cap. 30.                    Manco Capac is recognized as the
14 Among other authorities for name of the founder of the Peruthis tradition, see Sarmiento, Re- vian monarchy, though his history
lacion, MS., cap. 3, 4,- Herrera, and character are related with suf
Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. ficient discrepancy.




CH. I.]             EMPIRE OF THE INCAS.                         13
remains which still endure, after the lapse of so
many years, on its borders. Who this race were,
and whence they came, may afford a tempting
theme for inquiry to the speculative antiquarian.
But it is a land of darkness that lies far beyond the
domain of history.'5
The same mists that hang round the origin of the
Incas continue to settle on their subsequent annals;
and, so imperfect were the records employed by
the Peruvians, and so confused and contradictory
their traditions, that the historian finds no firm footing on which to stand till within a century of the
Spanish conquest.'6 At first, the progress of the
15 Mr. Ranking,                 the dark gulf that still separates
" Who can deep mysteries unriddle,  the Old World from the New.
As easily as thread a needle,"    16 A good deal within a century,
finds it " highly probable that the  to say truth.  Garcilasso and Sarfirst Inca of Peru was a son of the  miento, for example, the two anGrand Khan Kublai"! (Histori- cient authorities in highest repute,
cal Researches on the Conquest of  have scarcely a point of contact in
Preru, &c., by the Moguls, (Lon- their accounts of the earlier Perudon, 1827,) p. 170.)  The coinci- vian princes; the former representdences are curious, though    we   ing the sceptre as gliding down in
shall hardly jump at the conclusion  peaceful succession from hand to
of the adventurous author.  Every  hand, through an unbroken dynasscholar will agree with Humboldt, ty, while the latter garnishes his
in the wish that " some learned    tale with as many conspiracies, detraveller would visit the borders of  positions, and revolutions, as belong
the lake of Titicaca, the district of  to most barbarous, and, unhappily,
Callao, and the high plains of Tia- most civilized communities. When
huanaco, the theatre of the ancient to these two are added the various
American civilization."  (Vuesdes  writers, contemporary and of the
Cordilleres, p. 199.)  And yet the  succeeding age, who have treated
architectural monuments of the     of the Peruvian annals, we shall
aborigines, hitherto  brought to   find ourselves in such a conflict of
light, have furnished few materials traditions, that criticism is lost in
fora bridge of communication across  conjecture.  Yet this uncertainty




14           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.         [Boor& 
Peruvians seems to have been        spw, and almost
imperceptible. By their wise and temperate policy,
they gradually won over the neighbouring tribes to
their dominion, as these latter became more and
more convinced of the benefits of a just and wellregulated government. As they grew stronger, they
were enabled to rely more directly on force; but,
still advancing under cover of the same beneficent
pretexts employed by their predecessors, they proclaimed peace and civilization at the point of the
sword. The rude nations of the country, without
any principle of cohesion among themselves, fell one
after another before the victorious arm of the Incas.
Yet it was not till the middle of the fifteenth century that the famous Topa Inca Yupanqui, grandfather of the monarch who occupied the throne at
the coming of the Spaniards, led his armies across
the terrible desert of Atacama, and, penetrating to
the southern region of Chili, fixed the permanent
boundary of his dominions at the river Maule. His
son, Huayna Capac, possessed of ambition and military talent fully equal to his father's, marched along
the Cordillera towards the north, and, pushing his
conquests across the equator, added the powerful
kingdom of Quito to the empire of Peru.17,s to historical events fortunately Piru, MS.- Velasco, Hist. de
does not extend to the history of Quito, p. 59. - Dec. de la And.
arts and institutions, which were Real., MS. - Garcilasso, Corn.
in existence on the arrival of the Real., Parte 1, lib. 7, cap. 18, 19;
Spaniards.                  lib. 8, cap. 5-8.
17 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,  The last historian, and, indeed,
cap. 57, 64.- Conq. i Pob. del some others, refer the conquest of




Ca. I.J          EMPIRE OF THE INCAS.                    15
The ancient city of Cuzco, meanwhile, had been
gradually advancing in wealth and population, till
it had become the worthy metropolis of a great and
flourishing monarchy. It stood in a beautiful valley
on an elevated region of the plateau, which, among
the Alps, would have been buried in eternal snows,
but which within the tropics enjoyed a genial and
salubrious temperature. Towards the north it was
defended by a lofty eminence, a spur of the great
Cordillera; and the city was traversed by a river, or
rather a small stream, over which bridges of timber,
covered with heavy slabs of stone, furnished an
easy means of communication with the opposite
banks. The streets were long and narrow; the
houses low, and those of the poorer sort built of
clay  and   reeds.   But Cuzco      was   the   royal residence, and was adorned with the ample dwellings of
the great nobility; and the massy fragments still
incorporated in    many of the modern edifices bear
testimony to the size and solidity of the ancient.'8
Chili to Yupanqui, the father of lindas junturas, q illustra el antiTopa Inca. The exploits of the guedad del edificio, pues estauan
two monarchs are so blended to- piedras tan grades muy bien assengether by the different annalists, as tadas." (Ibid., ubi supra.) Comin a manner to confound their per- pare with this Miller's account of
sonal identity.               the city, as existing at the present
18 Garcilasso, Com. Real., lib. day.'L The walls of many of the
7, cap. 8- 11. - Cieza de Leon, houses have remained unaltered for
Cronica, cap. 92.              centuries. The great size of the
" El Cuzco tuuo gran manera y  stones, the variety of their shapes,
calidad, deuio ser fundada por and the inimitable workmanship
gente de gran ser. Auia grandes they display, give to the city that
calles, saluo q era angostas, y las interesting air of antiquity and rocasas hechas de piedra pura co tan mance, which fills the mind with




16           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BOOx I
The health of the city was promoted by spacious
openings and squares, in which a numerous population from the capital and the distant country assembled to celebrate the high festivals of their religion.
For Cuzco was the " Holy City ";19 and the great
temple of the Sun, to which pilgrims resorted from
the furthest borders of the empire, was the most
magnificent structure in the New World, and unsurpassed, probably, in the costliness of its decorations
by any building in the Old.
Towards the north, on the sierra or rugged eminence already noticed, rose a strong fortress, the
remains of which at the present day, by their vast
size, excite the admiration of the traveller.20 It
was defended by a single wall of great thickness,
and twelve hundred feet long on the side facing the
city, where the precipitous character of the ground
was of itself almost sufficient for its defence. On
the other quarter, where the approaches were less
difficult, it was protected by two other semicircular
walls of the same length as the preceding. They
were separated, a considerable distance from one
another and from the fortress; and the intervenpleasing though painful veneration." moirs, above cited, of Gen. Miller,
Memoirs of Gen. Miller in the Ser- which contain a minute and very
vice of the Republic of Peru, (Lon- interesting notice of modern Cuzco.
don, 1829, 2d ed.) vol. II. p. 225. (Vol. II. p. 223, et seq.) Ulloa,
19," La Imperial Ciudad de Coz- who visited the country in the midco, que la adoravan los Indios, como die of the last century, is unbounda Cosa Sagrada."   Garcilasso, ed in his expressions of admiration.
Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 20. Voyage to South America, Eng.
-Also Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS. trans., (London, 1806,) book VII
a0 See, among others, the Me- ch. 12.




CH. I.]        EMPIRE OF THE INCAS.                17
ing ground was raised so that the walls afforded a
breastwork for the troops stationed there in times of
assault. The fortress consisted of three towers,
detached from one another. One was appropriated
to the Inca, and was garnished with the sumptuous
decorations befitting a royal residence, rather than a
military post. The other two were held by the
garrison, drawn from the Peruvian nobles, and commanded by an officer of the blood royal; for the
position was of too great importance to be intrusted
to inferior hands. The hill was excavated below
the towers, and several subterraneous galleries communicated with the city and the palaces of the
Inca.2'
The fortress, the walls, and the galleries were all
built of stone, the heavy blocks of which were not
laid in regular courses, but so disposed that the small
ones might fill up the interstices between the great.
They formed a sort of rustic work, being roughhewn except towards the edges, which were finely
wrought; and, though no cement was used, the several blocks were adjusted with so much exactness
and united so closely, that it was impossible to introduce even the blade of a knife between them.22
21 Betanzos, Suma y Narracion impotent against the spirit of cu.
de los Yngas, MS., cap. 12.-  pidity and violence. See SarmiGarcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, ento, Relacion, MS., cap. 48.
iib. 7, cap. 27 -29.         22 Ibid., ubi supra. - InscripThe demolition of the fortress, ciones, Medallas, Templos, Edifibegun immediately after the Con- cios, Antiguedades, y Monumentos
quest, provoked the remonstrance del Peru, MS. This manuscript,
of more than one enlightened Span- which formerly belonged to Dr.
iard, whose voice, however, was Robertson, and which is now in
VOL. I.          3




(8            CIVILIZATION     OF THE INCAS.           [BooK 1.
Many of these      stones were of vast size; some of
them being full thirty-eight feet long, by eighteen
broad, and six feet thick.23
We are filled with astonishment, when we consider, that these enormous masses were hewn from
their native bed and fashioned into shape, by a
people ignorant of the use of iron; that they were
brought from quarries, from four to fifteen leagues
distant,24   without the     aid   of   beasts   of  burden;
were transported across rivers and ravines, raised
to their elevated position on the sierra, and finally
adjusted there with the nicest accuracy, without the
knowledge of tools and machinery familiar to the
European. Twenty thousand men are said to have
been employed on this great structure, and fifty
years consumed in the building.25 However this
may be, we see in it the workings of a despotism
the British Museum, is the work  may still be seen, it is said, in an
of some unknown author, some- unfinished state, in a quarry near
where probably about the time of Cuzco.
Charles III.; a period when, as   25 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
the sagacious scholar to whom I cap. 48. - Ondegardo, Rel. Seg.,
am indebted for a copy of it re- MS. - Garcilasso, Com. Real.,
marks, a spirit of sounder criticism  Parte 1, lib. 7, cap. 27, 28.
was visible in the Castilian histo-  The Spaniards, puzzled by the
rians.                          execution of so great a work with
23 Acosta, Naturall and Morall such apparently inadequate means,
Historie of the East and West In- referred it all, in their summary
dies, Eng. trans., (London, 1604,) way, to the Devil; an opinion
lib. 6, cap. 14. - He measured the which Garcilasso seems willing to
stones himself. -See also Garci- indorse. The author of the Antig.
lasso, Corn. Real., loc. cit.   y Monumentos del Peru, MS., re24 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. jects this notion with becoming
93. -Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.  gravity.
Many hundred blocks of granite




CH. I.]            ROYAL FAMILY.                   19
which had the lives and fortunes of its vassals at its
absolute disposal, and which, however mild in its
general character, esteemed these vassals, when employed in its service, as lightly as the brute animals
for which they served as a substitute.
The fortress of Cuzco was but part of a system of
fortifications established throughout their dominions
by the Incas. This system formed a prominent feature in their military policy; but before entering on this
latter, it will be proper to give the reader some view
of their civil institutions and scheme of government.
The sceptre of the Incas, if we may credit their
historian, descended in unbroken succession from father to son, through their whole dynasty. Whatever we may think of this, it appears probable that the
right of inheritance might be claimed by the eldest
son of the Coya, or lawful queen, as she was styled,
to distinguish her from the host of concubines who
shared the affections of the sovereign.26 The queen
was further distinguished, at least in later reigns, by
the circumstance of being selected from the sisters
of the Inca, an arrangement which, however revolting to the ideas of civilized nations, was recommended to the Peruvians by its securing an heir to
the crown of the pure heaven-born race, uncontaminated by any mixture of earthly mould.27
26 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., ed the Peruvian with the Aztec
cap. 7. —Garcilasso, Corn. Real., usage. The Report of the Royal
Parte 1, lib. 1, cap. 26.  Audience states that a brother sucAcosta speaks of the eldest ceeded in default of a son. Dec.
brother of the Inca as succeeding de la Aud. Real., MS.
in preference to the son. (lib. 6,  27 "L Et soror et conjux."-Accap. 12.) He may have confound- cording to Garcilasso, the heir-ap.




20          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK I
In his early years, the royal offspring was intrusted to the care of the amautas, or "wise men,"
as the teachers of Peruvian science were called, who
instructed him in such elements of knowledge as
they possessed, and especially in the cumbrous ceremonial of their religion, in which he was to take a
prominent part.    Great care was also bestowed
on his military education, of the last importance in
a state which, with its professions of peace and
good-will, was ever at war for the acquisition of
empire.
In this military school he was educated with such
of the Inca nobles as were nearly of his own age;
for the sacred name of Inca - a fruitful source of
obscurity in their annals - was applied indifferently
to all who descended by the male line from the
founder of the monarchy.28 At the age of sixteen
the pupils underwent a public examination, previous
to their admission to what may be called the order
of chivalry. This examination was conducted by
some of the oldest and most illustrious Incas. The
candidates were required to show their prowess in
the athletic exercises of the warrior; in wrestling
and boxing, in running such long courses as fully
tried their agility and strength, in severe fasts of
several days' duration, and in mimic combats, which,
parent always married a sister. however, is confirmed in his extra(Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. ordinary statement by Sarmiento.
9.) Ondegardo notices this as an Relacion, MS., cap. 7.
innovation at the close of the fif-  28 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte
teenth century. (Relacion Primera, 1, lib. 1, cap. 26.
MS.) The historian of the Incas,




CH. I.]         ROYAL FAMILY.             21
although the weapons were blunted, were always
attended with wounds, and sometimes with death.
During this trial, which lasted thirty days, the royal
neophyte fared no better than his comrades, sleeping on the bare ground, going unshod, and wearing
a mean attire, —a mode of life, it was supposed,
which might tend to inspire him with more sympathy with the destitute.  With all this show of
impartiality, however, it will probably be doing
no injustice to the judges to suppose that a politic discretion may have somewhat quickened their
perceptions of the real merits of the heir-apparent.
At the end of the appointed time, the candidates
selected as worthy of the honors of their barbaric
chivalry were presented to the sovereign, who condescended to take a principal part in the ceremony
of inauguration. He began with a brief discourse,
in which, after congratulating the young aspirants
on the proficiency they had shown in martial exercises, he reminded them of the responsibilities attached to their birth and station; and, addressing
them affectionately as "children of the Sun," he
exhorted them to imitate their great progenitor in
his glorious career of beneficence to mankind. The
novices then drew near, and, kneeling one by one
before the Inca, he pierced their ears with a golden
bodkin; and this was suffered to remain there till
an opening had been made large enough for the
enormous pendants which were peculiar to their
order, and which gave them, with the Spaniards,




22           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.            [BOOK I
the  name of orejones.29       This  ornament was       se
massy in the ears of the sovereign, that the cartilage was distended by it nearly to the shoulder, producing what seemed a monstrous deformity in the
eyes of the Europeans, though, under the magical
influence of fashion, it was regarded as a beauty by
the natives.
When this operation was performed, one of the
most venerable of the nobles dressed the feet of the
candidates in the sandals worn by the order, which
may remind us of the ceremony of buckling on the
spurs of the Christian knight. They were then
allowed to assume the girdle or sash around the
loins, corresponding with the toga virilis of the Romans, and intimating that they had reached the
season of manhood. Their heads were adorned
with garlands of flowers, which, by their various colors, were emblematic of the clemency and goodness
that should grace the character of every true warrior;
and the leaves of an evergreen plant were mingled
with the flowers, to show that these virtues should
29 From oreja, "ear." - "Los of it, and was as large as an orange.
caballeros de la sangre Real tenian  < La hacen tan ancha como una
orejas horadadas, y de ellas col- gran rosca de naranja; los Seilores
gando grandes rodetes de plata y i Principales traian aquellas roscas
oro: llamaronles por esto los ore- de oro fino en las orejas." (Conq.
jones los Castellanos la primera i Pob. del Piru, MS. - Also Garvezque los vieron." (Montesinos, cilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib.
Memorias Antiguas Historiales del 1, cap. 22.)  "The larger the
Peru, MS., lib. 2, cap. 6.) The hole," says one of the old Conornament, which was in the form  querors, " the more of a gentleof a wheel, did not depend from the man!" Pedro Pizarro, Descub.
ear, but was inserted in the gristle y Conq., MS.




CH. I.]           ROYAL FAMILY.                  23
endure without end.30 The prince's head was further
ornamented by a fillet, or tasselled fringe, of a yellow
color, made of the fine threads of the vicuna wool,
which encircled the forehead as the peculiar insignia
of the heir-apparent. The great body of the Inca
nobility next made their appearance, and, beginning
with those nearest of kin, knelt down before the
prince, and did him homage as successor to the
crown. The whole assembly then moved to the
great square of the capital, where songs, and dances,
and other public festivities closed the important ceremonial of the huaracu.'3
The reader will be less surprised by the resemblance which this ceremonial bears to the inauguration of a Christian knight in the feudal ages, if he
reflects that a similar analogy may be traced in the
institutions of other people more or less civilized;
and that it is natural that nations, occupied with the
one great business of war, should mark the period,
when the preparatory education for it was ended,
by similar characteristic ceremonies.
Having thus honorably passed through his ordeal,
the heir-apparent was deemed worthy to sit in the
councils of his father, and was employed in offices
of trust at home, or, more usually, sent on distant
expeditions to practise in the field the lessons
30 Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte something like a cross embroidered
1, lib. 6, cap. 27.       in front! (Historia del Peru, (Se31 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. villa, 1571,) Parte 2, lib. 3, cap.
24-28.                    6.) We may fancy ourselves ocAccording to Fernandez, the cupied with some chivalrous cerecandidates wore white shirts, with monial of the Middle Ages.




24           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.              [BOOK I.
which he had hitherto studied only on the mimic
theatre of war. His first campaigns were conducted
under the renowned commanders who had grown
grey in the service of his father; until, advancing
in years and experience, he was placed in command
himself, and, like Huayna Capac, the last and most
illustrious of his line, carried the banner of the rainbow, the armorial ensign of his house, far over the
borders, among the remotest tribes of the plateau.
The government of Peru was a despotism, mild
in its character, but in its form a pure and unmitigated despotism. The sovereign was placed at an
immeasurable distance above his subjects. Even
the proudest of the Inca nobility, claiming a descent
from the same divine original as himself, could not
venture into the royal presence, unless barefoot,
and bearing a light burden on his shoulders in token
of homage.32     As the representative of the Sun, he
stood at the head of the priesthood, and presided
at the most important of the religious festivals.33      He
32 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. hasta la presencia del Inga, y alli
1, cap. 11.- Sarmiento, Relacion, dejava la carga y hacia su obedienMS., cap. 7.                   cia." Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
" Porque verdaderamente a lo   33 It was only at one of these
que yo he averiguado toda la pre- festivals, and hardly authorizes the
tension de los Ingas fue una sub- sweeping assertion of Carli, that
jeccion en toda la gente, qual yo the royal and sacerdotal authority
nunca he oido decir de ninguna otra were blended together in Pert.
nacion en tanto grado, que por muy  We shall see, hereafter, the imprincipal que un Seforfuese,dende portant and independent position
que entrava cerca del Cuzco en  occupied by the high-priest. "La
cierta seiial que estava puesta en  Sacerdoce et l'Empire etoient dicada camino de quatro que hay, vises au Mexique; au lieu qu'ils
havia dende alli de venir cargado  6toient r6unis au Perou, comme




ut. I.]            ROYAL FAMILY.                    25
raised armies, and usually commanded them in person. He imposed taxes, made laws, and provided
for their execution by the appointment of judges,
whom he removed at pleasure. He was the source
from which every thing flowed,- all dignity, all
power, all emolument. He was, in short, in the
well-known phrase of the European despot, " himself the state."34
The Inca asserted his claims as a superior being
by assuming a pomp in his manner of living well
calculated to impose on his people. His dress was
of the finest wool of the vicuna, richly dyed, and ornamented with a profusion of gold and precious
stones. Round his head was wreathed a turban of
many-colored folds, called the llautu; and a tasselled
fringe, like that worn by the prince, but of a scarlet
color, with two feathers of a rare and curious bird,
called the coraquenque, placed upright in it, were the
distinguishing insignia of royalty. The birds from
which these feathers were obtained were found in
a desert country among the mountains; and it was
death to destroy or to take them, as they were reserved for the exclusive purpose of supplying the
royal head-gear. Every succeeding monarch was
au Tibet et a la Chine, et comme este titulo se hacia adorar, i goveril le fut a Rome, lorsqu' Auguste nava principalmente en tanto grado
jetta les fondemens de l'Empire, que nadie se le atrevia, i su palabra
en y reunissant le Sacerdoce ou la era ley, i nadie osaba ir contra su
dignite de Souverain Pontife." palabra ni voluntad; aunque obiese
Lettres Am6ricaines, (Paris, 1788,) de matar cient mill Indios, no havia
trad. Frang., tom I. let. 7.  ninguno en su Reino que le osase
34 " Porque el Inga dava a en- decir que no lo hiciese." Conq. i
tender que era hijo del Sol, con Pob. del Piru, MS.
VOL. I.           4




26            CIVILIZATION OF    1E INCAS.         [BooK I.
provided with a new pair of these plumes, and his
credulous subjects fondly believed that only two individuals of the species had ever existed to furnish
the simple ornament for the diadem of the Incas.35
Although the Peruvian monarch was raised so far
above the highest of his subjects, he condescended
to mingle occasionally with them, and took great
pains personally to inspect the condition of the humbler classes. He presided at some of the religious
celebrations, and on these occasions entertained the
great nobles at his table, when he complimented
them, after the fashion of more civilized nations, by
drinking the health of those whom he most delighted to honor.36
But the most effectual means taken by the Incas
for communicating with their people were their
progresses through the empire. These were con
ducted, at intervals of several years, with great
state and magnificence. The sedan, or litter, in
which they travelled, richly emblazoned with gold
and emeralds, was guarded by a numerous escort.
The men who bore it on their shoulders were pro35 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. table. (Com. Real., Parte 1, lib.
114. - Garcilasso, Com. Real., 6, cap. 23.).The only hours of
Parte 1, lib. 1, cap. 22; lib. 6, eating were at eight or nine in the
cap. 28. - Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 12. morning, and at sunset, which took
36 One would hardly expect to place at nearly the same time, in
find among the American Indians all seasons, in the latitude of Cuzco.
this social and kindly custom of The historian of the Incas admits
our Saxon ancestors, - now fallen that, though temperate in eating,
somewhat out of use, in the capri- they indulged freely in their cups,
cious innovations of modern fashion. frequently prolonging their revelry
Garcilasso is diffuse in his account to a late hour of the night. Ibid.,
of the forms observed at the royal Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 1.




CH. I.]              ROYAL FAMILY.                    27
vided by two cities, specially appointed for the purpose.   It was a post to be coveted by no one, if, as
is asserted, a fall was punished with death.37     They
travelled with ease and expedition, halting at the
tambos, or inns, erected by government along the
route, and occasionally at the royal palaces, which in
the great towns afforded ample accommodations to
the whole of the monarch's retinue. The noble
roads which traversed the table-land were lined
with people, who swept away the stones and stubble
from their surface, strewing them with sweet-scented
flowers, and vying with each other in carrying forward the baggage from one village to another. The
monarch halted from time to time to listen to the
grievances of his subjects, or to settle some points
which had been referred to his decision by the regular tribunals. As the princely train wound its way
along the mountain passes, every place was thronged
with spectators eager to catch a glimpse of their
sovereign; and, when he raised the curtains of his
litter, and showed himself to their eyes, the air was
rent with acclamations as they invoked blessings on
his head.38 Tradition long commemorated the spots
37 " In lectica, aureo tabulato — Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1,
constrath, humeris ferebant; in cap. 11.
umma, ea erat observantia, vt vul-  According to this writer, the
turn ejus intueri maxime incivile litter was carried by the nobles;
putarent, et inter baiulos, quicunque one thousand of whom were spevel leviter pede offenso haesitaret, e cially reserved for the humiliating
vestigio interficerent."  Levinus honor. Ubi supra.
Apollonius, De Peruvise Regionis  38 The acclamations must have
[nventione, et Rebus in eadem  been potent indeed, if, as Sarmiengestis, (Antverpike, 1567,) fol. 37. to tells us, they sometimes brought




28            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.             [BOOK i
at which he halted, and the simple people of the
country held them in reverence as places consecrated by the presence of an Inca.39
The royal palaces were on a magnificent scale,
and, far from being confined to the capital or a few
principal towns, were scattered over all the provinces of their vast empire.40 The buildings were
low, but covered a wide extent of ground. Some
of the apartments were spacious, but they were
generally small, and had no communication with one
another, except that they opened into a common
square or court. The walls were made of blocks
of stone of various sizes, like those described in
the fortress of Cuzco, rough-hewn, but carefully
wrought near the line of junction, which was scarcely visible to the eye. The roofs were of wood or
rushes, which have perished under the rude touch
of time, that has shown more respect for the walls
of the edifices. The whole seems to have been
characterized by solidity and strength, rather than
by any attempt at architectural elegance.41
the birds down from the sky! "De reader will find extracted in Apesta mancra eran tan temidos los pendix, No. 1.
Reyes quo si salian por el Reyno y  39 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte
permitian alzar algun paio de los 1, lib. 3, cap. 14; lib. 6, cap. 3. -
que iban en las andas para dejarse Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap.
ver de sus vasallos, alzaban tan  11.
gran alarido que hacian caer las  40 Telasco has given some acaves de lo alto donde iban volando  count of several of these palaces
a ser tomadas f manes."  (Rela- situated in different places in the
cion, MS., cap. 10.) The same kingdom of Quito. Hist. de Quito,
author has given in another place tom. I. pp. 195- 197.
a more credible account of the roy-  41 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap.
al progresses, which the Spanish  44.- Antig. y Monumentos del




CH. I.]               ROYAL FAMILY.                       29
But whatever want of elegance there may have
been in the exterior of the imperial dwellings, it was
amply compensated by the interior, in which all the
opulence of the Peruvian princes was ostentatiously displayed. The sides of the apartments were
thickly studded with gold and silver ornaments.
Niches, prepared in the walls, were filled with images of animals and plants curiously wrought of the
same costly materials; and even much of the domestic furniture, including the utensils devoted to
the most ordinary menial services, displayed the like
wanton magnificence!42        With these gorgeous decorations were mingled richly colored stuffs of the
delicate manufacture of the Peruvian wool, which
were of so beautiful a texture, that the Spanish
sovereigns, with all the luxuries of Europe and Asia
at their command, did not disdain to use them.43
Peru, MS.- See, among others, Bilcas, to the west of Cuzco, by
the description of the remains still Cieza de Leon, as reported to him
existing of the royal buildings at by Spaniards who had seen them
Callo, about ten leagues south of in their glory. (Cronica, cap. 89.)
Quito, by Ulloa, Voyage to S. The niches are still described by
America, book 6, ch. 11, and since, modern travellers as to be found
more carefully, by Humboldt, Vues in the walls. (Humboldt, Vues
des Cordilleres, p. 197.       des Cordilldres, p. 197.)
42 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte  43," La ropa de la cama toda era
I, lib. 6, cap. 1.             de mantas, y frepadas de lana de
"Tanto que todo el servicio de Vicufa, que es tan fina, y tan rela Casa del Rey asi de cantaras galada, que entre otras cosas prepara su vino, como de cozina, todo  ciadas de aquellas Tierras, se las
era oro y plata, y esto no en un han traido para la cama del Rey
lugar y en una parte lo tenia, sino Don Phelipe Segundo."  Garcien muchas."   (Sarmiento, Rela- lasso, Com. Real., Parte 1. lib. 6,
cion, MS., cap. 11.) See also the cap. 1.
flaming accounts of the palaces of




30         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BooK I.
The royal household consisted of a throng of menials, supplied by the neighbouring towns and villages, which, as in Mexico, were bound to furnish
the monarch with fuel and other necessaries for the
consumption of the palace.
But the favorite residence of the Incas was at
Yucay, about four leagues distant from the capital.
In this delicious valley, locked up within the friendly
arms of the sierra, which sheltered it from the rude
breezes of the east, and refreshed by gushing fountains and streams of running water, they built
the most beautiful of their palaces. Here, when
wearied with the dust and toil of the city, they
loved to retreat, and solace themselves with the
society of their favorite concubines, wandering
amidst groves and airy gardens, that shed around
their soft, intoxicating odors, and lulled the senses
to voluptuous repose. Here, too, they loved to indulge in the luxury of their baths, replenished by
streams of crystal water which were conducted
through subterraneous silver channels into basins
of gold. The spacious gardens were stocked with
numerous varieties of plants and flowers that grew
without effort in this temperate region of the tropics,
while parterres of a more extraordinary kind were
planted by their side, glowing with the various
forms of vegetable life skilfully imitated in gold and
silver! Among them the Indian corn, the most
beautiful of American grains, is particularly commemorated, and the curious workmanship is noticed
with which the golden ear was half disclosed amidst




CH. I.]           ROYAL FAMILY.                 31
the broad leaves of silver, and the light tassel of the
same material that floated gracefully from its top.44
If this dazzling picture staggers the faith of the
reader, he may reflect that the Peruvian mountains
teemed with gold; that the natives understood the
art of working the mines, to a considerable extent;
that none of the ore, as we shall see hereafter, was
converted into coin, and that the whole of it passed
into the hands of the sovereign for his own exclusive benefit, whether for purposes of utility or ornament. Certain it is that no fact is better attested
by the Conquerors themselves, who had ample means
of information, and no motive for misstatement.The Italian poets, in their gorgeous pictures of the
gardens of Alcina and Morgana, came nearer the
truth than they imagined.
Our surprise, however, may reasonably be ex
cited, when we consider that the wealth displayed
by the Peruvian princes was only that which each
had amassed individually for himself. He owed
nothing to inheritance from his predecessors. On
the decease of an Inca, his palaces were abandoned,
all his treasures, except what were employed in his
obsequies, his furniture and apparel, were suffered
to remain as he left them, and his mansions, save
44 Garcilasso, Cor. Real.,Parte as used in the royal buildings of
1, lib. 5, cap. 26; lib. 6, cap. 2.-  Tambo, a valley not far from YuSarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. cay! (Ubi supra.) We may ex
24. - Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cuse the Spaniards for demolishing
cap. 94.                  such edifices,-if they ever met
The last writrer speaks of a ce- with them.
ment, made in part of liquid gold,




32           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.        [BooK L
one, were closed up for ever. The new sovereign
was to provide himself with every thing new for his
royal state. The reason of this was the popular
belief, that the soul of the departed monarch would
return after a time to reanimate his body on earth;
and they wished that he should find every thing to
which he had been used in life prepared for his
reception.45
When an Inca died, or, to use his own language,
"was called home to the mansions of his father, the
Sun,"46 his obsequies were celebrated with great
pomp and solemnity. The bowels were taken from
the body, and deposited in the temple of Tampu,
about five leagues from the capital. A quantity of
his plate and jewels was buried with them, and a
number of his attendants and favorite concubines,
amounting sometimes, it is said, to a thousand, were
immolated on his tomb.47      Some of them    showed
the natural repugnance to the sacrifice occasionally
manifested by the victims of a similar superstition
in India. But these were probably the menials and
more humble attendants; since the women have
been known, in more than one instance, to lay
violent hands on themselves, when restrained from
45 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 12.-  47 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. -
Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, Acosta, lib. 5, cap. 6.
lib. 6, cap. 4.              Four thousand of these victims,
46 The Aztecs, also, believed according to Sarmiento,- we may
that the soul of the warrior who hope it is an exaggeration, -
fell in battle went to accompany graced the funeral obsequies of
the Sun in his bright progress Huayna Capac, the last of the
through the heavens. (See Con- Incas before the coming of the
quest of Mexico, book 1, chap. 3.) Spaniards. Relacion, MS., cap. 65




CH. I.]         ROYAL FAMILY.              33
testifying their fidelity by this act of conjugal martyrdom. This melancholy ceremony was followed
by a general mourning throughout the empire. At
stated intervals, for a year, the people assembled to
renew the expressions of their sorrow; processions
were made, displaying the banner of the departed
monarch; bards and minstrels were appointed to
chronicle his achievements, and their songs continued to be rehearsed at high festivals in the presence
of the reigning monarch, - thus stimulating the
living by the glorious example of the dead.48
The body of the deceased Inca was skilfully embalmed, and removed to the great temple of the
Sun at Cuzco. There the Peruvian sovereign, on
entering the awful sanctuary, might behold the
effigies of his royal ancestors, ranged in opposite
files, - the men on the right, and their queens on the
left, of the great luminary which blazed in refulgent
gold on the walls of the temple. The bodies,
clothed in the princely attire which they had been accustomed to wear, were placed on chairs of gold, and
sat with their heads inclined downward, their hands
placidly crossed over their bosoms, their countenances
exhibiting their natural dusky hue, - less liable to
change than the fresher coloring of a European complexion, - and their hair of raven black, or silvered
over with age, according to the period at which they
died! It seemed like a company of solemn worshippers fixed in devotion, - so true were the forms and
48 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 5. -Sarmien62. - Garcilasso, Corn. Real., to, Relacion, MS., cap. 8.
VOL I.         5




34              CIVILIZATION    OF THE INCAS.            [BooK I.
lineaments to life. The Peruvians were as successful as the Egyptians in the miserable attempt to perpetuate the existence of the body beyond the limits
assigned to it by nature.49
They cherished a still stranger illusion in the attentions which they continued to pay to these insensible remains, as if they were instinct with life.
One of the houses belonging to a deceased Inca was
kept open and occupied by his guard and attendants, with all the state appropriate to royalty. On
certain festivals, the revered bodies of the sovereigns
were brought out with great ceremony into the
public square of the capital. Invitations were sent
by the captains of the guard of the respective Incas
to the different nobles and officers of the court; and
entertainments were provided in the names of their
masters, which displayed all the profuse magnifi49 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. use his own expression, " perfect
-Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte   as life, without so much as a hair
1, lib. 5, cap. 29.              or an eyebrow    wanting."   As
The Peruvians secreted these   they were carried   through the
mummies of their sovereigns after streets, decently shrouded with a
the Conquest, that they might not mantle, the Indians threw  thembe profaned by the insults of the  selves on their knees, in sign of
Spaniards. Ondegardo, when cor- reverence, with many tears and
7regidor of Cuzco, discovered five  groans, and were still more touched
of them, three male and two fe- as they beheld some of the Span
male. The former were the bodies iards themselves doffing their caps,
of Viracocha, of the great Tupac  in token of respect to departed
Inca Yupanqui, and of his son Hu- royalty.  (Ibid., ubi supra.)  The
ayna Capac. Garcilasso saw them  bodies were subsequently removed
in 1560. They were dressed in to Lima; and Father Acosta, who
their regal robes, with no insignia  saw them there some twenty years
but the llautu on theirheads. They  later, speaks of them  as still in
were in a sitting posture, and, to  perfect preservation.




LH. I.]                   NOBILITY.                        35
cence of their treasures, - and " such a display,"
says an ancient chronicler, " was there in the great
square of Cuzco, on this occasion, of gold and silver
plate and jewels, as no other city in the world ever
mitnessed. 50       The    banquet was      served    by   the
menials of the respective households, and the guests
partook of the melancholy cheer in the presence of
the royal phantom      with   the   same attention     to  the
forms of courtly etiquette as if the living monarch
had   presided!5
The nobility of Peru consisted of two orders, the
first and by far the most important of which was
that of the Incas, who, boasting a common descent
with their sovereign, lived, as it were, in the reflected light of his glory.        As the Peruvian monarchs availed themselves of the right of polygamy to
a very liberal extent, leaving behind         them   families
of one or even two hundred children,52 the nobles of
b0 " Tenemos por muy cierto   virtues, were in heaven, although,
que ni en Jerusalem, Roma, ni en in truth," as the same writer asPersia, ni en ninguna parte del sures us, " they were all the time
mundo por ninguna Republica ni burning in the flames of hell"'
Rey de el, se juntaba en un lugar " Digo los que haviendo sido en vida
tanta riqueza de Metales de oro y  buenos y valerosos, generosos con
Plata y Pedreria como en esta Plaza los Indios en les hacer mercedes, perdel Cuzco; quando estas fiestas y  donadores de injurias, porque a esotras semejantes se hacian."  Sar- tos tales canonizaban en su cegueda'I
miento, Relacion, MS., cap. 27.  por Santos y honrraban sus huesos,
51 Idem, Relacion, MS., cap. 8, sin entender que las animas ardian
27. -Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.  en los Ynfiernos y creian que estaIt was only, however, the great ban en el Cielo." Ibid., ubi supr.:
and good princes that were thus   52 Garcilasso says over threl,
honored, according to Sarmiento, hundred! (Com. Real., Parte 1,
"whose souls the silly people fond- lib. 3, cap. 19.) The fact, though
ly believed, on account of their rather startling, is not incrediYle




36            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.             [BOOK I.
the blood royal, though comprehending only their
descendants in the male line, came in the course of
years to be very numerous.53 They were divided
into different lineages, each of which traced its pedigree to a different member of the royal dynasty,
though all terminated in the divine founder of the
empire.
They were distinguished by many exclusive and
very important privileges; they wore a peculiar dress;
spoke a dialect, if we may believe the chronicler,
peculiar to    themselves;54     and   had   the   choicest
portion of the public domain assigned for their
support. They lived, most of them, at court, near
the person of the prince, sharing in his coun
sels, dining at his board, or supplied from his table
They alone were admissible to the great offices in
the priesthood. They were invested with the command of armies, and of distant garrisons, were
placed over the provinces, and, in short, filled every
station of high trust and emolument.55 Even the
if, like Huayna Capac, they count- to see confirmed by a single aued seven hundred wives in their thority.
seraglio. See Sarmiento, Relacion,  54 " Los Incas tuvieron otra
MS., cap. 7.                   Lengua particular, que hablavan
53 Garcilasso mentions a class entre ellos, que no la entendian los
of Incas por privilege, who were  demas Indios, ni les era licito
allowed to possess the name and  aprenderla, como Lenguage Divino.
many of the immunities of the blood Esta me escriven del Peru, que se
royal, though only descended from  ha perdido  totalmente; porque
the great vassals that first served como perecio la Republica particuunder the banner of Manco Capac. lar de los Incas, perecio tambien
(Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. 1, cap. el Lenguage dellos."  Garcilasso,
22.) This important fact, to which Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 7, cap. 1.
he often refers, one would be glad  55 " Una sola gente hallo yo que




CH. I.]                 NOBILITY.                      37
laws, severe in their general tenor, seem not to have
been framed with reference to them; and the people,
investing the whole order with a portion of the sacred character which belonged to the sovereign, held
that an Inca noble was incapable of crime.56
The other order of nobility was the Curacas, the
caciques of the conquered nations, or their descendants. They were usually continued by the government in their places, though they were required to
visit the capital occasionally, and to allow their sons
to be educated there as the pledges of their loyalty.
It is not easy to define the nature or extent of their
privileges. They were possessed of more or less
power, according to the extent of their patrimony,
and the number of their vassals. Their authority was
usually transmitted from father to son, though sometimes the successor was chosen by the people.57
They did not occupy the highest posts of state, or
those nearest the person of the sovereign, like the
nobles of the blood. Their authority seems to have
been usually local, and always in subordination to
era exenta, que eran los Ingas del  57 In this event, it seems, the
Cuzco y por alli al rededor de am- successor named was usually prebas parcialidades, porque estos no sented to the Inca for confirmation.
solo no pagavan tribute, pero aun  (Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.) At
comian de lo que traian al Inga de other times, the Inca himself selecttodo el reino, y estos eran por la ed the heir from among the children
mayor parte los Governadores en of the deceased Curaca.  " In
todo el reino, y por donde quiera short," says Ondegardo, "there
que iban se les hacia mucha hon- was no rule of succession so sure,
rra." Ondegardo, Rel. Prim.,MS. but it might be set aside by the
56 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte supreme will of the sovereign."
1, lib. 2, cap. 15.           Rel. Prim., MS.




38          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.    [BOOK 1.
the territorial jurisdiction of the great provincial
governors, who were taken from the Incas.58
It was the Inca nobility, indeed, who constituted
the real strength of the Peruvian monarchy.  Attached to their prince by ties of consanguinity, they
had common sympathies and, to a considerable extent, common interests with him. Distinguished by
a peculiar dress and insignia, as well as by language
and blood, from  the rest of the community, they
were never confounded with the other tribes and nations who were incorporated into the great Peruvian
monarchy. After the lapse of centuries, they still
retained their individuality as a peculiar people.
They were to the conquered races of the country
what the Romans were to the barbarous hordes of
the Empire, or the Normans to the ancient inhabitants of the British Isles. Clustering around the
throne, they formed an invincible phalanx, to shield
it alike from secret conspiracy and open insurrection. Though living chiefly in the capital, they
were also distributed throughout the country in all
its high stations and strong military posts, thus establishing lines of communication with the court,
which enabled the sovereign to act simultaneously
and with effect on the most distant quarters of his
empire. They possessed, moreover, an intellectual
preeminence, which, no less than their station, gave
them authority with the people. Indeed, it may be
58 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte la Aud. Real., MS. - Cieza da
1, lib. 4, cap. 10. —Sarmiento, Leon, Cronica, cap. 93.-Conq.
Relacion, MS., cap. 11.- Dec. de i Pob. del Piru, MS.




CH. I.]               NOBILITY.                   39
said to have been the principal foundation of their
authority.   The crania of the Inca race show      a
decided superiority over the other races of the land
in intellectual power;59 and it cannot be denied
that it was the fountain of that peculiar civilization
and social polity, which raised the Peruvian monarchy above every other state in South America.
Whence this remarkable race came, and what was
its early history, are among those mysteries that
meet us so frequently in the annals of the New
World, and which time and the antiquary have as
yet done little to explain.
59 Dr. Morton's valuable work great, was much larger than that
contains several engravings of both in the latter, which was singularly
the Inca and the common Peruvian flat and deficient in intellectual charskull, showing that the facial angle acter. Crania Americana, (Philain the former, though by no means delphia, 1829.)




CHAPTER II.
ORDERS OF THE STATE. - PROVISIONS FOR JUSTICE. - DIVISION OF
LANDS.-REVENUES AND REGISTERS. GREAT ROADS AND POSTS.
MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.
IF we are surprised at the peculiar and original
features of what may be called the Peruvian aristocracy, we shall be still more so as we descend to
the lower orders of the community, and see the very
artificial character of their institutions, -as artificial
as those of ancient Sparta, and, though in a different way, quite as repugnant to the essential principles of our nature. The institutions of Lycurgus,
however, were designed for a petty state, while
those of Peru, although originally intended for such,
seemed, like the magic tent in the Arabian tale, to
have an indefinite power of expansion, and were as
well suited to the most flourishing condition of the
empire as to its infant fortunes.  In this remarkable accommodation to change of circumstances we
see the proofs of a contrivance that argues no slight
advance in civilization.
The name of Peru was not known to the natives.
It was given by the Spaniards, and originated, it is
said, in a misapprehension of the Indian name of




CH. II.]         ORDERS OF THE STATE.                    41
" river. 1    However this may be, it is certain that
the natives had no other epithet by which to designate the large collection of tribes and nations who
were assembled under the sceptre of the Incas, than
that of Tavantinsuyu,        or " four quarters     of   the
world." 2 This will not surprise a citizen of the
United States, who has no other name by which to
class himself among nations than what is borrowed
from   a quarter of the globe.3       The kingdom, conformably to its name, was divided into four parts,
distinguished each by a separate title, and to each
of which ran one of the four great roads that diverged from Cuzco, the capital or navel of the
Peruvian monarchy. The city was in like manner
divided into four quarters; and the various races,
which gathered there from the distant parts of the
empire, lived each in the quarter nearest to its respective province. They all continued to wear their
1 Pelu, according to Garcilasso, sition, has in time been corrupted
was the Indian name for "river," into Phiru, Pzru, Peru! The
and was given by one of the natives first book of the Memorias, conin answer to a question put to him  sisting of thirty-two chapters, is
by the Spaniards, who conceived it devoted to this precious discovto be the name of the country. cry.
(Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 1, cap.  2 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
6.)  Such blunders have led to the - Garcilasso, Corn Real., Parte 1,
names of many places both in North lib. 2, cap. 11.
and South America. Montesinos,   3 Yet an American may find
however, denies that there is such food for his vanity in the reflection,
an Indian term for" river." (Mem. that the name of a quarter of the
Antiguas, MS., lib. 1, cap. 2.) globe, inhabited by so many civilAccording to this writer, Peru was ized nations, has been exclusively
the ancient Ophir, whence Solo- conceded to him. - Was it conmon drew such stores of wealth; ceded or assumed?
and which, by a very natural tranVOL. I.             6




42            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BooK 1
peculiar national costume, so that it was easy to
determine their origin; and the same order and system of arrangement prevailed in the motley population of the capital, as in the great provinces of the
empire. The capital, in fact, was a miniature image of the empire.'
The four great provinces were each placed under
a viceroy or governor, who ruled over them with
the assistance of one or more councils for the different   departments.     These   viceroys   resided, some
portion of their time, at least, in the capital, where
they constituted a sort of council of state to the
Inca.5   The   nation  at large was distributed      into
decades, or small bodies of ten; and every tenth
man, or head of a decade, had supervision of the
rest, - being required to see that they enjoyed the
rights and immunities to which they were entitled,
to solicit aid in their behalf from government, when
necessary, and    to bring offenders to justice.      To
this last they were stimulated by a law that imposed on them, in case of neglect, the same penalty
that would have been incurred by the guilty party.
With this law hanging over his head, the magis4 Ibid., parte 1, cap. 9, 10.-  -Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1,
Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 93.  lib. 2, cap. 15.
The capital was further divided  For this account of the councils
into two parts, the Upper and I am indebted to Garcilasso, who
Lower town, founded, as pretend- frequently fills up gaps that have
ed, on the different origin of the been left by his fellow-laborers.
population; a division recognized Whether the filling up will, in all
also in the inferior cities. Onde- cases, bear the touch of time, as
gardo, Rel. Seg., MS.        well as the rest of his work, one
5 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS. may doubt.




CH. II       PROVISIONS FOR JUSTICE.          43
trate,f Peru, we may well believe, did not often go
to sleep on his post.6
The people were still further divided into bodies
of fifty, one hundred, five hundred, and a thousand,
with each an officer having general supervision over
those beneath, and the higher ones possessing, to a
certain extent, authority in matters of police. Lastly, the whole empire was distributed into sections or
departments of ten thousand inhabitants, with a
governor over each, from the Inca nobility, who had
control over the curacas and other territorial officers
in the district. There were, also, regular tribunals
of justice, consisting of magistrates in each of the
towns or small communities, with jurisdiction over
petty offences, while those of a graver character
were carried before superior judges, usually the governors or rulers of the districts. These judges all
held their authority and received their support from
the Crown, by which they were appointed and removed at pleasure. They were obliged to determine every suit in five days from the time it was
brought before them; and there was no appeal from
one tribunal to another. Yet there were important
provisions for the security of justice. A committee
of visitors patrolled the kingdom at certain times to
investigate the character and conduct of the magis6 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS. — hundreds and tithings! But the
Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas, MS., Saxon law was more humane,
lib. 2, cap. 6. - Ondegardo, Rel. which imposed only a fine on the
Prim., MS.               district, in case of a criminal's
How analogous is the Peruvian escape.
to the Anglo-Saxon division into




44            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.             [BOOK I.
trates; and any neglect or violation of duty was
punished in the most exemplary manner. The inferior courts were also required to make monthly
returns of their proceedings to the higher ones, and
these made reports in like manner to the viceroys;
so that the monarch, seated in the centre of his
dominions, could look abroad, as it were, to their
most distant extremities, and review and rectify any
abuses in the administration of the law.7
The laws were few and exceedingly severe.
They related almost wholly to criminal matters.
Few other laws were needed by a people who had
no money, little trade, and hardly any thing that
could be called fixed property. The crimes of theft,
adultery, and murder were all capital; though it
was wisely provided that some extenuating circumstances might be allowed to mitigate the punishment.8 Blasphemy against the Sun, and malediction of the Inca,- offences, indeed, of the same
complexion, - were also punished with death. Re7 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.   Theft was punished less severe- Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et Seg., ly, if the offender had been really
MSS. - Garcilasso, Com. Real., guilty of it to supply the necessiParte 1, lib. 2, cap. 11-14. -  ties of life. It is a singular cirMontesinos, Mem. Antiguas, MS., cumstance, that the Peruvian law
lib. 2, cap. 6.                made no distinction between forni
The accounts of the Peruvian  cation and adultery, both being
tribunals by the early authorities equally punished with death. Ye
are very meagre and unsatisfactory. the law could hardly have beer
Even the lively imagination of enforced, since prostitutes were
Garcilasso has failed to supply the assigned, or at least allowed, a
blank.                         residence in the suburbs of the
8 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. cities. See Garcilasso, Corn. Real.,
-Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 5, Parte 1, lib. 4, cap.'4.
lib. 4, cap. 3.




CH. II.]      PROVISIONS FOR JUSTICE.             45
moving landmarks, turning the water away from a
neighbour's land into one's own, burning a house,
were all severely punished. To burn a bridge was
death. The Inca allowed no obstacle to those facilities of communication so essential to the maintenance of public order. A rebellious city or province was laid waste, and its inhabitants exterminated.
Rebellion against the " Child of the Sun " was the
greatest of all crimes.9
The simplicity and severity of the Peruvian code
may be thought to infer a state of society but little
advanced; which had few of those complex interests and relations that grow up in a civilized
community, and which had not proceeded far enough
in the science of legislation to economize human
suffering by proportioning penalties to crimes. But
the Peruvian institutions must be regarded from a
different point of view from that in which we study
those of other nations. The laws emanated from
the sovereign, and that sovereign held a divine commission, and was possessed of a divine nature. To
violate the law was not only to insult the majesty
of the throne, but it was sacrilege. The slightest
offence, viewed in this light, merited death; and
the gravest could incur no heavier penalty.'~ Yet,
9 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., " En las rebeliones y alzamientos
cap. 23.                   se hicieron los castigos tan asperos,
" I los traidores entre ellos lla- que algunas veces asolaron las promava aucaes, i esta palabra es la vincias de todos los varones de
mas abiltada de todas quantas pue- edad sin quedar ninguno."  Onden decir aun Indio del Pird, que degardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
quiere decir traidor a su Senor."  10 " El castigo era riguroso, que
(Conq. i Pob. del Piri, MS.) por la mayor parte era de muerte,




16           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BooK 1
in the infliction of their punishments, they showed
no unnecessary cruelty; and the sufferings of the
victim were not prolonged by the ingenious torments
so frequent among barbarous nations."l
These legislative provisions may strike us as very
defective, even as compared with those of the semicivilized races of Anahuac, where a gradation of
courts, moreover, with the right of appeal, afforded a
tolerable security for justice. But in a country like
Peru, where few but criminal causes were known, the
right of appeal was of less consequence. The law
was simple, its application easy; and, where the judge
was honest, the case was as likely to be determined
correctly on the first hearing as on the second. The
inspection of the board of visitors, and the monthly
returns of the tribunals, afforded no slight guaranty
for their integrity. The law which required a decision within five days would seem        little suited to
the complex and embarrassing litigation of a modern
tribunal. But, in the simple questions submitted to
the Peruvian judge, delay would have been useless;
and the Spaniards, familiar with the evils growing
out of long-protracted suits, where the successful litigant is too often a ruined man, are loud in their
por liviano que fuese el delito;  u One of the punishments most
porque decian, que no los castiga- frequent for minor offences was to
van por el delito que avian hecho, carry a stone on the back. A punni por la ofensa agena, sino por ishment attended with no suffering
aver quebrantado el mandamiento, but what arises from the disgrace
y rompido la palabra del Inca, que attached to it is very justly charlo respetavan como a Dios." Gar- acterized by McCulloh as a proof
cilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. of sensibility and refinement. Re2, cap. 12.                   searches, p. 361.




CH. II.]           DIVISION OF LANDS.                     47
encomiums      of  this   swift-handed     and   economical
justice.l2
The fiscal regulations of the Incas, and the laws
respecting   property, are the     most remarkable       features in the Peruvian polity. The whole territory
of the empire was divided into three parts, one for
the Sun, another for the Inca, and the last for the
people. Which of the three was the largest is
doubtful. The proportions differed materially in
different provinces. The distribution, indeed, was
made on the same general principle, as each new
conquest was added to the monarchy; but the
proportion varied according to the amount of population, and the greater or less amount of land consequently required for the support of the inhabitants.3
The lands assigned to the Sun furnished a revenue to support the temples, and maintain the
costly ceremonial of the Peruvian worship and the
12 The Royal Audience of Peru todas las cosas susodichas se deunder Philip II.- there cannot be terminaban sin hacerles costas."
a higher authority -bears em- Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.
phatic testimony to the cheap and  13 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15.efficient administration of justice  Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1,
under the Incas. " De suerte que lib. 5, cap. 1.
los vicios eran bien castigados y la  "Si estas partes fuesen iguales,
gente estaba bien sujeta y obediente; o qual fuese mayor, yo lo he proy aunque en las dichas penas havia curado averiguar, y en unas es
esceso, redundaba en buen govierno  diferente de otras, y finalmte yo
y policia suya, y mediante ella eran  tengo entendido que se hacia conaumentados...... Porque los forme a la disposicion de la tierra
Yndios alababan la governacion del y a la calidad de los Indios."  OnYnga, y aun los Espafioles que degardo, Rel Prim., MS.
algo alcanzan de ella, es porque




48           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BOOK I.
multitudinous priesthood. Those reserved for the
Inca went to support the royal state, as well as the
numerous members of his household and his kindred,
and supplied the various exigencies of government.
The remainder of the lands was divided, per capita,
in equal shares among the people. It was provided
by law, as we shall see hereafter, that every Peruvian should marry at a certain age. When this
event took place, the community or district in which
he lived furnished him with a dwelling, which, as it
was constructed of humble materials, was done at
little cost. A lot of land was then assigned to him
sufficient for his own maintenance and that of his
wife. An additional portion was granted for every
child, the amount allowed for a son being the double
of that for a daughter. The division of the soil was
renewed every year, and the possessions of the
tenant were increased or diminished according to
the numbers in his family.14    The same arrangement
was observed with reference to the curacas, except
only that a domain was assigned to them corresponding with the superior dignity of their stations 15
14 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. a hundred weight of Indian corn.
- Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, In the fruitful soil of Peru, this was
lib. 5, cap. 2.               a liberal allowance for a family.
The portion granted to each new-  15 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 3.
married couple, according to Gar-  It is singular, that while so much
cilasso, was a fanega and a half of is said of the Inca sovereign, so
land.  A similar quantity was little should be said of the Inca
added for each male child that was nobility, of their estates, or the
born; and half of the quantity for tenure by which they held them.
each female. The fanega was as Their historian tells us, that they
much land as could be planted with had the best of the lands, wherever




AH. II.]         DIVISION OF LANDS.               49
A more thorough and effectual agrarian law than
this cannot be imagined. In other countries where
such a law has been introduced, its operation, after
a time, has given way to the natural order of events,
and, under the superior intelligence and thrift of
some and the prodigality of others, the usual vicissitudes of fortune have been allowed to take their
course, and restore things to their natural inequality.
Even the iron law of Lycurgus ceased to operate
after a time, and melted away before the spirit of
luxury and avarice. The nearest approach to the
Peruvian constitution was probably in Judea, where,
on the recurrence of the great national jubilee, at
the close of every half-century, estates reverted to
their original proprietors.  There was this important
difference in Peru; that not only did the lease, if
we may so call it, terminate with the year, but dur
ing that period the tenant hadl no power to alienate
or to add to his possessions.  The end of the brief
term found him in precisely the same condition that
he was in at the beginning.   Such a state of things
might be supposed to be fatal to any thing like attachment to the soil, or to that desire of improving
it, which is natural to the permanent proprietor,
and hardly less so to the holder of a long lease.  But
they resided, besides the interest But this is very loose language.
which they had in those of the Sun The student of history will learn,
and the Inca, as children of the on the threshold, that he is not to
one, and kinsmen of the other. He expect precise, or even very coninforms us, also, that they were sistent, accounts of the institutions
supplied from the royal table, when of a barbarous age and people,
living at court. (lib. 6, cap. 3.) from contemporary annalists.
VOL. 1.          7




50          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BOOK I
the practical operation of the law seems to have been
otherwise; and it is probable, that, under the influence of that love of order and aversion to change
which marked the Peruvian institutions, each new
partition of the soil usually confirmed the occupant
in his possession, and the tenant for a year was
converted into a proprietor for life.
The territory was cultivated wholly by the people.
The lands belonging to the Sun were first attended
to. They next tilled the lands of the old, of the
sick, of the widow and the orphan, and of soldiers
engaged in actual service; in short, of all that part
of the community who, from bodily infirmity or
any other cause, were unable to attend to their
own concerns.   The people were then allowed to
work on their own ground, each man for himself, but
with the general obligation to assist his neighbour, when any circumstance - the burden of a
young and numerous family, for example - might
demand it.16 Lastly, they cultivated the lands of the
Inca. This was done, with great ceremony, by the
whole population in a body. At break of day, they
were summoned together by proclamation from some
neighbouring tower or eminence, and all the inhabitants of the district, men, women, and children, appeared dressed in their gayest apparel, bedecked
with their little store of finery and ornaments, as if
16 Garcilasso relates that an In- poor. The gallows was erected
dian was hanged by Huayna Capac on the curaca's own land. Ibid.
for tilling a curaca's ground, his Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 2.
near relation, before that of the




CH. II.]        DIVISION OF LANDS.                51
for some great jubilee. They went through the
labors of the day with the same joyous spirit, chanting their popular ballads which commemorated the
heroic deeds of the Incas, regulating their moveanents by the measure of the chant, and all mingling.n the chorus, of which the word hailli, or " triumph," was usually the burden. These national airs
had something soft and pleasing in their character,
that recommended them to the Spaniards; and
many a Peruvian song was set to music by them
after the Conquest, and was listened to by the unfortunate natives with melancholy satisfaction, as it
called up recollections of the past, when their days
glided peacefully away under the sceptre of the
Incas.17
A similar arrangement prevailed with respect to
the different manufactures as to the agricultural
products of the country. The flocks of llamas, or
Peruvian sheep, were appropriated exclusively to the
Sun and to the Inca.'8  Their number was immense.
They were scattered over the different provinces,
chiefly in the colder regions of the country, where
they were intrusted to the care of experienced shepherds, who conducted them to different pastures ac17 Ibid., Parte l,lib. 5, cap. 1-3. of llamas, -never many. These
- Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.  were not to be disposed of or killed
18 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. by their owners, but descended as
Yet sometimes the sovereign common property to their heirs.
would recompense some great chief, This strange arrangement proved a
or even some one among the peo- fruitful source of litigation after
ple, who had rendered him a ser- the Conquest. Ibid., ubi supra.
vice, by the grant of a small number




52         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.     rBjoo 1.
cording to the change of season. A largte rnmber
was every year sent to the capital for the consumption of the Court, and for the religious festivals and
sacrifices. But these were only the males, as no
female was allowed to be killed.    The regulations for the care and breeding of these flocks
were prescribed with the greatest minuteness, and
with a sagacity which excited the admiration of the
Spaniards, who were familiar with the management
of the great migratory flocks of merinos in their own
country.l9
At the appointed season, they were all sheared,
and the wool was deposited in the public magazines.
It was then dealt out to each family in such quantities as sufficed for its wants, and was consigned to
the female part of the household, who were well instructed in the business of spinning and weaving.
When this labor was accomplished, and the family
was provided with a coarse but warm covering,
suited to the cold climate of the mountains, - for,
in the lower country, cotton, furnished in like manter by the Crown, took the place, to a certain extent,
of wool, - the people were required to labor for the
Inca. The quantity of the cloth needed, as well as
the peculiar kind and quality of the fabric, was
first determined at Cuzco. The work was then apportioned among the different provinces.  Officers,
appointed for the purpose, superintended the distri19 See especially the account of contemporary writer, concerning
the Licentiate Ondegardo, who the management of the Peruvian
goes into more detail than any flocks. Rel. Seg., MS.




CH. II.]     REVENUES AND REGISTERS            53
bution of the wool, so that the manufacture of the
different articles should be intrusted to the most
competent hands.20  They did not leave the matter
here but entered the dwellings, from time to time,
and saw that the work was faithfully executed.
This domestic inquisition was not confined to the
labors for the Inca.  It included, also, those for the
several families; and care was taken that each household should employ the materials furnished for its
own use in the manner that was intended, so
that no one should be unprovided with necessary
apparel.21  In this domestic labor all the female
part of the establishment was expected to join.
Occupation was found for all, from the child five
years old to the aged matron not too infirm to hold a
distaff. No one, at least none but the decrepit and
the sick, was allowed to eat the bread of idleness in
Peru. Idleness was a crime in the eye of the law,
and, as such, severely punished; while industry
was publicly commended and stimulated by rewards.22
The like course was pursued with reference to the
other requisitions of the government. All the mines
in the kingdom belonged to the Inca. They were
wrought exclusively for his benefit, by persons famil20 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et any other Peruvian. Garcilasso,
Seg.. MSS.               Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 6.
The manufacture of cloths for  21 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
the Inca included those for the - Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15.
numerous persons of the blood  22 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
royal, who wore garments of a — Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1,
finer texture than was permitted to lib. 5, cap. 11.




.4            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [Boox I
iar with this service, and selected from    the districts
where the mines were situated.23        Every Peruvian
of the lower class was a husbandman, and, with the
exception of those already specified, was expected
to provide for his own support by the cultivation
of his land. A small portion of the community,
however, was instructed in mechanical arts; some
of them of the more elegant kind, subservient to the
purposes of luxury and ornament. The demand for
these was chiefly limited to the sovereign and his
Court; but the labor of a larger number of hands
was exacted for the execution of the great public
works which     covered the land.      The nature    and
amount of the services required were all determined
at Cuzco by commissioners well instructed in the
resources of the country, and in the character of the
inhabitants of different provinces.24
This information was obtained by an admirable
regulation, which has scarcely a counterpart in the
annals of a semi-civilized people. A register was
kept of all the births and deaths throughout the
country, and exact returns of the actual population
23 Garcilasso would have us be- speak of the mines as the properlieve that the Inca was indebted to ty of the government, and wrought
the curacas for his gold and silver, exclusively for its benefit. From
which were furnished by the great this reservoir the proceeds were
vassals as presents. (Com. Real., liberally dispensed in the form of
Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 7.) This im- presents among the great lords,
probable statement is contradicted and still more for the embellishby the Report of the Royal Au- ment of the temples.
dience, MS., by Sarmiento, (Rela-  24 Garcilasso, Con. Real., Parte
cion, MS., cap. 15,) and by On- 1, lib. 5, cap. 13-16. —Ondedegardo, (Rel. Prim.,MS.) who all gardo, Rel. Prim. et Seg., MSS




LH. II.]       REVENUES AND REGISTERS.                    55
were made to government every year, by means of
the quipus, a curious invention, which will be explained   hereafter.25    At certain     intervals, also, a
general survey of the country was made, exhibiting
a complete view of the character of the soil, its fertility, the nature of its products, both agricultural
and mineral, - in short, of all that constituted the
physical resources of the empire.26        Furnished with
tfese statistical details, it was easy for the government, after determining the amount of requisitions, to
distribute the work among the respective provinces
best qualified to execute it. The task of apportioning the labor was assigned to the local authorities,
and great care was taken that it should be done in
such a manner, that, while the most competent
hands were selected, it should not fall disproportionately heavy on any.27
The different provinces of the country furnished
persons peculiarly suited to different employments,
which, as we shall see hereafter, usually descended
25 Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas,  26 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte
MS., lib. 2, cap. 6.-Pedro Pi- 1, lib. 2, cap. 14.
zarro, Relacion del Descubrimiento  27 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
y Conquista de los Reynos del — Sarmiento, Rel., MS., cap. 15.
Peru, MS.                        " Presupuesta y entendida la
"Cada provincia, en fin del ano, dicha division que el Inga tenia
mandava asentar en los quipos, por hecha de su gente, y orden que tela cuenta de sus nudos, todos los nia puesta en el govierno de ella,
hombres que habian muerto en ella era muy facil haverla en la division
en aquel anio, y por el consiguiente y cobranza de los dichos tributos;
los que habian nacido, y por prin- porque era claro y cierto lo que a
cipio del afo que entraba, venian cada uno cabia sin que hubiese
con los quipos al Cuzco."  Sar- desigualdad ni engaio."  Dec. de
miento, Relacion, MS., cap. 16.  la Aud. Real., MS.




56           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BooK I.
from  father to son.    Thus, one district supplied
those most skilled in working the mines, another
the most curious workers in metals, or in wood,
and so on.23    The artisan was provided by government with the materials; and no one was required to give more than a stipulated portion of his
time to the public service. He was then succeeded
by another for the like term; and it should be observed, that all who were engaged in the employment of the government-      and the remark applies
equally to agricultural labor - were maintained, for
the time, at the public expense.2"  By this constant
rotation of labor, it was intended that no one should
be overburdened, and that each man should have
time to provide for the demands of his own household.  It was impossible- in the judgment of a
high Spanish authority - to improve on the system
of distribution, so carefully was it accommodated to
the condition  and comfort of the artisan.30     The
security of the working classes seems to have been
ever kept in view in the regulations of the government; and these were so discreetly arranged, that
the most wearing and unwholesome labors, as those
of the mines, occasioned no detriment to the health
28 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., moderado, y con el menos riesgo
eap. 15. -Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., que fuese posible...... Era
MS.                        tanta la orden que tuvieron estos
9 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. Indios, que a mi parecer aunque
- Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte I, mucho se piense en ello seria difilib. 5, cap. 5.            cultoso mejorarla conocida su con30 " Y tambien se tenia cuenta dicion y costumbres." Ondegarque el trabajo que pasavan fuese do, Rel. Prim., MS.




CH II.]       REVENUES AND REGISTERS.               57
of the laborer; a striking contrast to his subsequent
condition under the Spanish rule.31
A part of the agricultural produce and manufactures was transported to Cuzco, to minister to the immediate demands of the Inca and his Court. But far
the greater part was stored in magazines scattered
over the different provinces. These spacious buildings, constructed of stone, were divided between
the  Sun and    the Inca, though the greater share
seems to have been appropriated by the monarch.
By a wise regulation, any deficiency in the contributions of the Inca might be supplied        from  the
granaries of the Sun.32   But such a necessity could
rarely have happened; and the providence of the
government usually left a large surplus in the royal
depositories, which was removed to a third class of
magazines, whose design was to supply the people
in seasons of scarcity, and, occasionally, to furnish
relief to individuals, whom sickness or misfortune
had reduced to poverty; thus, in a manner, justifying the assertion of a Castilian document, that a
large portion of the revenues of the Inca found its
31 " The working of the mines,"  "E asi esta parte del Inga no
says the President of the Council hay duda sino que de todas tres era
of the Indies, t" was so regulated la mayor, y en los depositos se pathat no one felt it a hardship, much rece bien que y6 visit6 muchos en
less was his life shortened by it." diferentes partes, e son mayores e
(Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. mas largos que n6 los de su religion
15) It is a frank admission for a sin comparasion."  Idem, Rel.
Spaniard.                   Seg., MS.
32 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte
1, lib. 5, cap. 34. —Ondegardo,
Rel. Prim., MS.
VOL. I.           8




b8             CIVILIZATION    OF THE INCAS.           [BOOK I.
way back again, through one channel or another,
into  the   hands of the     people.33    These magazines
were found by the Spaniards, on their arrival, stored
with all the various products and manufactures of
the  country,-     with   maize, coca, quinua, woollen
and cotton stuffs of the finest quality, with vases
and utensils of gold, silver, and copper, in short,
with every article of luxury or use within the compass of Peruvian skill.3 The magazines of grain,
in particular, would frequently have sufficed for the
consumption of the adjoining district for several
years.35 An inventory of the various products of
the country, and the quarters whence they were obtained, was every year taken         by the   royal officers,
and recorded by the quipucamayus on their registers,
with   surprising    regularity   and    precision.    These
registers were transmitted to the capital, and submitted to the Inca, who could thus at a glance, as it
33 " Todos los dichos tributos y  muchos depositos de barretas de
servicios que el Inga imponia y  cobre para las minas y de costales
llevaba como dicho es eran con y sogas de vasos de palo y platos
color y para efecto del govierno y  del oro y plata que aqui se hallo
pro comun de todos asi como lo que hera cosa despanto."  Pedro Pise ponia en depositos todo se com- zarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.
bertia y distribuia entre los mismos  35 For ten years, sometimes, if
naturales." Dec. delaAud. Real., we may credit Ondegardo, who
MS.                             had every   means of knowing.
34 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15.   " E ansi cuando n6 era menester
"No podre decir," says one of se estaba en los depositos e habia
the Conquerors, " los depositos. algunas vezes comida de diez anos.
Vide de rropas y de todos generos..... Los cuales todos se hallade rropas y vestidos que en este ron llenos cuando llegaron los Esreino se hacian y vsavan que fal- pafoles desto y de todas las cosas
tava tiempo para vello y entendi- necesarias para la vida humana."
miento para comprender tanta cosa, Rel. Seg., MS.




CH. II.]    REVENUES AND REGISTERS.          59
were, embrace the whole results of the national industry, and see how far they corresponded with the
requisitions of government.36
Such are some of the most remarkable features of
the Peruvian institutions relating to property, as
delineated by writers who, however contradictory
in the details, have a general conformity of outline.
These institutions are certainly so remarkable, that
it is hardly credible they should ever have been enforced throughout a great empire, and for a long
period of years. Yet we have the most unequivocal
testimony to the fact from the Spaniards, who
landed in Peru in time to witness their operation;
some of whom, men of high judicial station and
character, were commissioned by the government
to make investigations into the state of the country
under its ancient rulers.
The impositions on the Peruvian people seem
to have been sufficiently heavy. On them rested
the whole burden of maintaining, not only their
own order, but every other order in the state.
The members of the royal house, the great nobles,
even the public functionaries, and the numerous
body of the priesthood, were all exempt from taxation.37 The whole duty of defraying the expenses
of the government belonged to the people. Yet this
36 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. menudo lo manifestaron que se
"Por tanta orden 6 cuenta que pudiera por estenso." Idem, Rel.
seria dificultoso creerlo ni darlo a Seg., MS.
entender como ellos lo tienen en  37 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte
su cuenta 6 por registros e por 1, lib. 5, cap. 15.




60         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.' Bos I.
was not materially different from the condition of
things formerly existing in most parts of Europe,
where the various privileged classes claimed exemption - not always with success, indeed - from
bearing part of the public burdens.   The great
hardship in the case of the Peruvian was, that he
could not better his condition. His labors were for
others, rather than for himself. However industrious, he could not add a rood to his own possessions,
nor advance himself one hair's breadth in the social
scale. The great and universal motive to honest
industry, that of bettering one's lot, was lost upon
him. The great law of human progress was not
for him. As he was born, so he was to die. Even
his time he could not properly call his own. Without money, with little property of any kind, he paid
his taxes in labor.38 No wonder that the government should have dealt with sloth as a crime. It
was a crime against the state, and to be wasteful of
time was, in a manner, to rob the exchequer. The
Peruvian, laboring all his life for others, might be
compared to the convict in a treadmill, going the
same dull round of incessant toil, with the consciousness, that, however profitable the results to
the state, they were nothing to him.
But this is the dark side of the picture. If no man
could become rich in Peru, no man could become
poor. No spendthrift could waste his substance ii
38," Solo el trabajo de las per- porque ellos no poseian otra cosa.
sonas era el tributo que se dava, Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.




CH. II.]       REVENUES AND REGISTERS.                    61
riotous luxury.     No adventurous schemer could impoverish his family by the spirit of speculation.
The law was constantly directed to enforce a steady
industry   and   a  sober management of his           affairs.
No mendicant was tolerated in Peru.           When a man
was reduced      by poverty or misfortune,         (it could
hardly be by fault,) the arm of the law was stretched
out to minister relief; not the stinted relief of
private charity, nor that which is doled out, drop
by drop, as it were, from the frozen reservoirs of
"the parish," but in generous measure, bringing            no
humiliation to the object of it, and placing him on a
level with the rest of his countrymen.39
No man could be rich, no man could be poor, in
Peru; but all might enjoy, and did enjoy, a competence. Ambition, avarice, the love of change, the
morbid spirit of discontent, those passions which
most agitate the minds of men, found no place
in the bosom of the Peruvian. The very condi39 " Era tanta la orden que te- have leaned for support; no surer
nia en todos sus Reinos y provin- way to harden the heart, he concias, que no consentia haver ningun  siders, than by thus disengaging it
Indio pobre ni menesteroso, porque from the sympathies of humanity;
havia orden i formas para ello sin and no circumstance has done more,
que los pueblos reciviesen vexacion  he concludes, to counteract the inni molestia, porque el Inga lo suplia fluence and spread of Christianity
de sus tributes."  (Conq. i Pob. among the natives. (Rel. Seg.,
del Piru, MS.)   The Licentiate MS.) The views are ingenious.
Ondegardo sees only a device of but, in a country where the people
Satan in these provisions of the had no property, as in Peru, there
Peruvian law, by which the old, would seem to be no alternative for
the infirm, and the poor were ren- the supernumeraries, but to receive
dered, in a manner, independent of support from  government or to
their children, and those nearest of starve.
kin, on whom they would naturally




62         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BooK I.
tion of his being seemed to be at war with change.
He moved on in the same unbroken circle in which
his fathers had moved before him, and in which his
children were to follow. It was the object of the
Incas to infuse into their subjects a spirit of passive
obedience and tranquillity, -a perfect acquiescence
in the established order of things. In this they fully
succeeded.  The Spaniards who first visited the
country are emphatic in their testimony, that no
government could have been better suited to the
genius of the people; and no people could have
appeared more contented with their lot, or more
devoted to their government.40
Those who may distrust the accounts of Peruvian
industry will find their doubts removed on a visit to
the country. The traveller still meets, especially in
the central regions of the table-land, with memorials
of the past, remains of temples, palaces, fortresses,
terraced mountains, great military roads, aqueducts,
and other public works, which, whatever degree of
science they may display in their execution, astonish
him by their number, the massive character of the
materials, and the grandeur of the design. Among
them, perhaps the most remarkable are the great
roads, the broken remains of which are still in sufficient preservation to attest their former magnificence. There were many of these roads, traversing
different parts of the kingdom; but the most considerable were the two which extended from Quito
40 Actita, lib. 6, cap. 12, 15.- Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 1t




t u II.]      GREAT ROADS AND POSTS.                63
to Cuzco, and, again diverging from the capital, continued in a southern direction towards Chili.
One of these roads passed over the grand plateau,
and the other along the lowlands on the borders of
the ocean. The former was much the more difficult
achievement, from the character of the country. It
was conducted over pathless sierras buried in snow;
galleries were cut for leagues through      the living
rock; rivers were crossed by means of bridges that
swung suspended in the air; precipices were scaled
by stairways hewn out of the native bed; ravines
of hideous depth were filled up with solid masonry;
in short, all the difficulties that beset a wild and
mountainous region, and which might appall the
most courageous engineer of modern times, were
encountered and successfully overcome.     The length
of the road, of which scattered fragments only remain, is variously estimated, from fifteen hundred to
two thousand miles; and stone pillars, in the manner of European milestones, were erected at stated
intervals of somewhat more than a league, all along
the route.    Its breadth scarcely exceeded twenty
feet.41  It was built of heavy flags of freestone,
and in some parts, at least, covered with a bitu41 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.  do, por junto a los Rios sus pare" Este camino hecho por valles des, entre nieves con escalones y
ondos y por sierras altas, por mon- descanso, por todas partes limpio
tes de nieve, por tremedales de barrido descombrado, lleno de apoagua y por peia viva y junto a sentos, de depositos de tesoros, de
rios furiosos por estas partes y Templos del Sol, de Postas que
ballano y empedrado por las lade- havia en este camino." Sarmienras, bien sacado por las sierras, to, Relacion, MS., cap. 60.
deshechado, por las penas socava



64            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BOOK L
minous cement, which time has made harder than
the stone itself.    In   some   places, where the ravines had been filled up with masonry, the mountain torrents, wearing on it for ages, have gradually
eaten a way through the base, and left the superincumbent mass - such is the cohesion of the materials -  still spanning the valley like an arch! 42
Over some of the boldest streams it was necessary to construct suspension bridges, as they are
termed, made of the tough fibres of the maguey, or
of the osier of the country, which has an extraordinary degree of tenacity and strength.       These osiers
were woven into cables of the thickness of a man's
body. The huge ropes, then stretched across the
water, were conducted through rings or holes cut in
immense buttresses of stone raised on the opposite
banks of the river, and there secured to heavy pieces
of timber.    Several of these enormous cables, bound
together, formed a bridge, which, covered with
planks, well secured and defended by a railing of
the same osier materials on the sides, afforded a safe
passage for the traveller.    The length of this aerial
42 " On avait comble les vides speaks from personal observation,
et les ravins par de grandes masses having examined and measured
de ma}onnerie. Les torrents qui different parts of the road, in the
descendent des hauteurs apres des latter part of the last century. The
pluies abondantes, avaient creuse Spanish scholar will find in Appenles endroits les moins solides, et dix, No. 2., an animated descrips'etaient fraye une voie sous le tion of this magnificent work, and
chemin, le laissant ainsi suspendu of the obstacles encountered in the
en l'air comme un pont fait d'une execution of it, in a passage borseule piece."  (Velasco, Hist. de rowed from Sarmiento, who saw it
Quito, tom. I. p. 206.) This writer in the days of the Incas.




CH. II.]    GREAT ROADS AND POSTS.           65
bridge, sometimes exceeding two hundred feet,
caused it, confined, as it was, only at the extremities,
to dip with an alarming inclination towards the
centre, while the motion given to it by the passenger occasioned an oscillation still more frightful, as his
eye wandered over the dark abyss of waters that
foamed and tumbled many a fathom beneath. Yet
these light and fragile fabrics were crossed without
fear by the Peruvians, and are still retained by the
Spaniards over those streams which, from the depth
or impetuosity of the current, would seem impracticable for the usual modes of conveyance. The
wider and more tranquil waters were crossed on
balsas - a kind of raft still much used by the natives
- to which sails were attached, furnishing the only
instance of this higher kind of navigation among the
American Indians.43
The other great road of the Incas lay through the
level country between the Andes and the ocean. It
was constructed in a different manner, as demanded
by the nature of the ground, which was for the most
part low, and much of it sandy. The causeway
was raised on a high embankment of earth, and defended on either side by a parapet or wall of clay;
and trees and odoriferous shrubs were planted along
the margin, regaling the sense of the traveller with
43 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte CordiIIeres, p. 230, et seq.) The
1, lib. 3, cap. 7.       balsas are described with equal
A particular account of these minuteness by Stevenson. Resibridges, as they are still to be seen dence in America, vol. II. p. 222.
in different parts of Peru, may be et seq.
found in Humboldt. (Vues des
VOL. r.        9




66          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK 1.
their perfumes, and refreshing him by their shades,
so grateful under the burning sky of the tropics.
In the strips of sandy waste, which occasionally intervened, where the light and volatile soil was incapable of sustaining a road, huge piles, many of them
to be seen at this day, were driven into the ground
to indicate the route to the traveller.44
All along these highways, caravansaries, or tambos,
as they were called, were erected, at the distance
of ten or twelve miles from  each other, for the accommodation, more particularly, of the Inca and his
suite, and those who journeyed on the public business.  There were few     other travellers in Peru.
Some of these buildings were on an extensive scale,
consisting of a fortress, barracks, and other military
works, surrounded by a parapet of stone, and covering a large tract of ground.  These were evidently
destined for the accommodation of the imperial
armies, when on their march across the country. -
The care of the great roads was committed to the
districts through which they passed, and a large
number of hands was constantly employed under
the Incas to keep them in repair. This was the
more easily done in a country where the mode of
travelling was altogether on foot; though the roads
are said to have been so nicely constructed, that a
44 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. tains a minute and probably trust60. -Relacion del Primer Descu- worthy account of both the high
brimiento de la Costa y Mar del roads, which the writer saw in
Sur, MS.                  their glory, and which he ranks
This anonymous document of among the greatest wonders of the
one of the early Conquerors con- world.




UH. II.]     GREAT ROADS AND POSTS.             67
carriage might have rolled over them as securely
as on any of the great roads of Europe.45      Still,
in a region where the elements of fire and water
are both actively at work in the business of destruction, they must, without constant supervision,
have gradually gone to decay. Such has been their
fate under the Spanish conquerors, who took no
care to enforce the admirable system for their preservation adopted by the Incas. Yet the broken
portions that still survive, here and there, like the
fragments of the great Roman roads scattered over
Europe, bear evidence to their primitive grandeur,
and have drawn forth the eulogium from a discriminating traveller, usually not too profuse in his panegyric, that " the roads of the Incas were among the
most useful and stupendous works ever executed by
man."46
The system of communication through their dominions was still further improved by the Peruvian
sovereigns, by the introduction of posts, in the same
manner as was done by the Aztecs. The Peruvian
posts, however, established on all the great routes
that conducted to the capital, were on a much more
extended plan than those in Mexico. All along
45 Relacion del Primer Descub., Romains que j'aie vues en Italie,
MS.-Cieza de Leon, Cronica, en France et en Espagne......
cap. 37.- Zarate, Conq. del Peru, Le grand chemin de l'Inca, un des
lib. 1, cap. 11. -Garcilasso, Corn. ouvrages les plus utiles, et en
Real., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. 13.  meme temps des plus gigantesques
46 " Cette chauss6e, bordee de que les hommes aient execute."
grandes pierres de taille, peut etre Humboldt, Vues des Cordilleres
comparee aux plus belles routes des p. 294.




68            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BooK I.
these routes, small buildings were       erected, at the
distance of less than five miles asunder,47 in each
of which a number of runners, or chasquis, as they
were called, were     stationed   to carry forward     the
despatches of government.48 These despatches were
either verbal, or conveyed by means of quipus, and
sometimes accompanied by a thread of the crimson
fringe worn round the temples of the Inca, which
was regarded with the same implicit deference as
the signet ring of an Oriental despot.49
The chasquis were dressed in a peculiar livery,
intimating their profession. They were all trained
to the employment, and selected for their speed and
fidelity. As the distance each courier had to perform was small, and as he had ample time to refresh
himself at the stations, they ran over the ground with
great swiftness, and messages were carried through
the whole extent of the long routes, at the rate of
a hundred and fifty miles a day. The office of the
chasquis was not limited       to  carrying despatches.
They frequently brought various articles for the use
47 The distance between  the lasso, a better authority for his own
posthouses is variously stated; tongue, says it meant "one who
most writers not estimating it at makes an exchange." Corn. Real.,
more than three fourths of a league. Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 8.
I have preferred the authority of  49 " Con vn hilo de esta Borla,
Ondegardo, who usually writes entregado a uno de aquellos Orewith more conscientiousness and jones, governaban la Tierra, i proknowledge of his ground than most veian lo que querian con maior
of his contemporaries.        obediencia, que en ninguna Pro48 The term chasqui, according vincia del Mundo se ha visto tener
to Montesinos, signifies "one that a las Provissiones de su Rei."
receives a thing." (Mem. Anti- Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1,
guas, MS., cap. 7.) But Garci- cap. 9.




tH. II.]        GREAT ROADS AND POSTS.                     69
of the Court; and in this way, fish from          the distant
ocean, fruits, game, and      different commodities from
the hot regions on the coast, were taken to the capital in good condition, and served fiesh at the royal
table.50 It is remarkable that this important institution should have been known to both the Mexicans
and the Peruvians without any correspondence with
one another; and that it should have been found
among two barbarian nations of the New World, long
before it was introduced among the civilized nations
of Europe.51
By these wise contrivances of the Incas, the most
distant parts of the long-extended empire of Peru
were brought into intimate relations with each other.
And while the capitals of Christendom, but a few
hundred miles apart, remained as far asunder as if
seas had    rolled   between    them, the     great capitals
50 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., Aud. Real., MS.-Fernandez,
cap. 18. -Dec. de la Aud. Real., Hist. del Peru, Parte 2, lib. 3,
MS.                             cap. 5.-Conq. i Pob. del Piru,
If we may trust Montesinos, the MS., et auct. plurimis.
royal table was served with fish,  The establishment of posts is of
taken a hundred leagues from the  old date among the Chinese, and,
capital, in twenty-four hours after probably, still older among the
it was drawn from   the ocean! Persians.  (See Herodotus, Hist.,
(Mem. Antiguas, MS., lib. 2, cap. Urania, sec. 98.) It is singular,
7.) This is rather too expeditious that an invention designed for the
for any thing but rail-cars.    uses of a despotic  government
51 The institution of the Peru- should have received its full applivian posts seems to have made a cation only under a free one. For
great impression on the minds of in it we have the germ of that
the Spaniards who first visited the beautiful system of intercommunicountry; and ample notices of it cation, which binds all the nations
may be found in Sarmiento, Rela- of Christendom  together as one
cion, MS., cap. 15.- Dec. de la vast commonwealth.




70         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS    [BooK I.
Cuzco and Quito were placed by the high roads
of the Incas in immediate correspondence. Intelligence from the numerous provinces was transmitted
on the wings of the wind to the Peruvian metropolis, the great focus to which all the lines of
communication converged. Not an insurrectionary
movement could occur, not an invasion on the
remotest frontier, before the tidings were conveyed
to the capital, and the imperial armies were on their
march across the magnificent roads of the country
to suppress it. So admirable was the machinery
contrived by the American despots for maintaining
tranquillity throughout their dominions! It may
remind us of the similar institutions of ancient
Rome, when, under the Caesars, she was mistress
of half the world.
A principal design of the great roads was to serve
the purposes of military communication. It formed
an important item of their military policy, which is
quite as well worth studying as their municipal.
Notwithstanding the pacific professions of the
Incas, and the pacific tendency, indeed, of their
domestic institutions, they were constantly at war.
It was by war that their paltry territory had been
gradually enlarged to a powerful empire. When
this was achieved, the capital, safe in its central
position, was no longer shaken by these military
movements, and the country enjoyed, in a great
degree, the blessings of tranquillity and order.
But, however tranquil at heart, there is not a reign
upon record in which the nation was not engaged




CH. II.]  MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.      71
in war against the barbarous nations on the frontier.  Religion furnished a plausible pretext for
incessant aggression, and disguised the lust of conquest in the Incas, probably, from their own eyes,
as well as from  those of their subjects.  Like
the followers of Mahomet, bearing the sword in
one hand and the Koran in the other, the Incas of
Peru offered no alternative but the worship of the
Sun or war.
It is true, their fanaticism-or their policyshowed itself in a milder form tlan was found in
the descendants of the Prophet.  Like the great
luminary which they adored, they operated by gentleness more potent than violence.5` They sought
to soften the hearts of the rude tribes around them,
and melt them by acts of condescension and kindness. Far from provoking hostilities, they allowed
time for the salutary example of their own institutions to work its effect, trusting that their less civilized neighbours would submit to their sceptre, from
a conviction of the blessings it would secure to them.
When this course failed, they employed other
measures, but still of a pacific character; and endeavoured by negotiation, by conciliatory treatment,
and by presents to the leading men, to win them
over to their dominion. In short, they practised all
the arts familiar to the most subtle politician of a
civilized land to secure the acquisition of empire.
52 " Mas se hicieron Seniores al za."  Ondegardo, Rel. Prim.,
principio por mana, que por fuer- MS




72         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BOOE J.
When all these expedients failed, they prepared
for war.
Their levies were drawn from all the different
provinces; though from some, where the character
of the people was particularly hardy, more than from
others.53 It seems probable that every Peruvian,
who had reached a certain age, might be called to
bear arms. But the rotation of military service, and
the regular drills, which took place twice or thrice
in a month, of the inhabitants of every village, raised
the soldiers generally above the rank of a raw militia.  The Peruvian army, at first inconsiderable,
came, with the increase of population, in the latter
days of the empire, to be very large, so that their
monarchs could bring into the field, as contemporaries assure us, a force amounting to two hundred
thousand men.   They showed the same skill and
respect for order in their military organization, as
in other things.  The troops were divided into
bodies corresponding with our battalions and companies, led by officers, that rose, in regular gradation,
from the lowest subaltern to the Inca noble, who
was intrusted with the general command.54
Their arms consisted of the usual weapons employed by nations, whether civilized or uncivilized,
before the invention of powder, - bows and arrows,
lances, darts, a short kind of sword, a battle-axe or
partisan, and slings, with which they were very ex53 Idem, Rel. Prim., MS.-  54 Gomara, Cronica, cap. 195.
Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.  -Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.




CH. II.]  MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.        73
pert. Their spears and arrows were tipped with
copper, or, more commonly, with bone, and the
weapons of the Inca lords were frequently mounted
with gold or silver. Their heads were protected by
casques made either of wood or of the skins of
wild animals, and sometimes richly decorated with
metal and with precious stones, surmounted by the
brilliant plumage of the tropical birds. These, of
course, were the ornaments only of the higher orders.  The great mass of the soldiery were dressed
in the peculiar costume of their provinces, and their
heads were wreathed with a sort of turban or roll of
different-colored cloths, that produced a gay and animating effect.  Their defensive armor consisted of
a shield or buckler, and a close tunic of quilted
cotton, in the same manner as with the Mexicans.
Each company had its particular banner, and the
imperial standard, high above all, displayed the glittering device of the rainbow, - the armorial ensign
of the Incas, intimating their claims as children of
the skies.55
By means of the thorough system of communication established in the country, a short time. sufficed
to draw the levies together from the most distant
quarters. The army was put under the direction of
some experienced chief, of the blood royal, or, more
55 Gomara, Cronica, ubi supra. catalogue of the ancient Peruvian
- Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. arms, comprehending nearly every
20. - Velasco, Hist. de Quito, thing familiar to the European soltom. I. pp. 176 - 179.  dier, except fire-arms. - It was juThis last writer gives a minute dicious in him to omit these.
VOL. I.        10




74             CIVILIZATION    OF THE INCAS.          [BOOK I
frequently, headed       by  the   Inca   in  person.     The
march was rapidly performed, and with little fatigue
to the soldier; for, all along the great routes, quarters
were provided      for him, at regular distances, where
he could find ample accommodations. The country
is still covered with the remains of military works,
constructed of porphyry or granite, which tradition
assures us were designed to lodge the Inca and his
army.56
At regular intervals, also, magazines were established, filled with grain, weapons, and the different
munitions of war, with which the army was supplied   on its march.       It was the especial care of
the government to see that these magazines, which
were furnished from       the stores of the Incas, were
always well filled.       When     the  Spaniards invaded
the country, they supported their own armies for
a long time on the provisions found in them.57
56 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. personal knowledge, " el Seiior
1, cap. 11. —Sarmiento, Relacion, Presidente Gasca pass6 con la
MS., cap. 60.                   gente de castigo de Gonzalo PiCondamine speaks of the great zarro por el valle de Jauja, estuvo
number of these fortified places, alli siete semnans a lo que me
scattered over the country between  acuerdo, se hallaron en deposito
Quito and Lima, which he saw in maiz de cuatro y de tres y de dos
his visit to South America in 1737; afos mas de 15 D. hanegas junto
some of which he has described  al camino, 6 alli comio la gente, y
with great minuteness. M6moire se entendi6 que si fuera menester
sur Quelques Anciens Monumens muchas mas n6 faltaran en el valle
du Pdrou, du Tems des Incas, ap. en aquellos depositos, conforme a
Histoire de l'Acad6mie Royale des la orden antigua, porque a mi cargo
Sciences etde Belles Lettres, (Ber- estubo el repartirlas y hacer la
lin, 1748,) tom. II. p. 438.    cuenta para pagarlas." Rel. Seg.,
57 " E ansi cuando," says On- MS.
degardo, speaking from his own




CH. IT.]  MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY       75
The Peruvian soldier was forbidden to commit
any trespass on the property of the inhabitants
whose territory lay in the line of march.  Any
violation of this order was punished with death.58
The soldier was clothed and fed by the industry
of the people, and the Incas rightly resolved that
he should not repay this by violence.  Far from
being a tax on the labors of the husbandman, or
even a burden on his hospitality, the imperial armies traversed the country, from one extremity to
the other, with as little inconvenience to the inhabitants, as would be created by a procession of
peaceful burghers, or a muster of holiday soldiers
for a review.
From the moment war was proclaimed, the Peruvian monarch used all possible expedition in assembling his forces, that he might anticipate the
movements of his enemies, and prevent a combination with their allies. It was, however, from the
neglect of such a principle of combination, that the
several nations of the country, who might have prevailed by confederated strength, fell one after another under the imperial yoke. Yet, once in the
field, the Inca did not usually show any disposition
to push his advantages to the utmost, and urge his
foe to extremity. In every stage of the war, he was
open to propositions for peace; and although he
sought to reduce his enemies by carrying off their
58 Pedro Pizarro, Descub y nica, cap. 44. —Sarmiento, RelaConq., MS. - Cieza de Leon, Cro- cion, MS., cap. 14.




76           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.        [BOOK 1.
harvests and distressing them by famine, he allowed
his troops to commit no unnecessary outrage on person or property. " We must spare our enemies," one
of the Peruvian princes is quoted as saying, " or it
will be our loss, since they and all that belongs to
them must soon be ours." 59 It was a wise maxim,
and, like most other wise maxims, founded equally
on benevolence and prudence. The Incas adopted
the policy claimed for the Romans by their countryman, who tells us that they gained more by clemency to the vanquished than by their victories.60
In the same considerate spirit, they were most
careful to provide for the security and comfort of
their own troops; and, when a war was long protracted, or the climate proved unhealthy, they took
care to relieve their men by frequent feinforcements, allowing the earlier recruits to return to their
homes.6l But while thus economical of life, both in
their own followers and in the enemy, they did not
shrink from sterner measures when provoked by the
ferocious or obstinate character of the resistance;
and the Peruvian annals contain more than one of
those sanguinary pages which cannot be pondered
at the present day without a shudder. It should be
added, that the beneficent policy, which I have been
59 "Mandabase que en los man- liviana que ser pudiese." Sartenimientos y casas de los enemi- miento, Relacion, MS., cap. 14.
gos se hiciese poco dano, diciendo-  60 " Plus pene parcendo victis,
les el Sefor, presto seran estos quam vincendo imperium auxisse."
nuestros como los que ya lo son; Livy, lib. 30, cap. 42.
como esto tenian conocido, procu-  61 Garcilasso, Com. Real.,Parte
raban que la guerra fuese la mas 1, lib. 6, cap. 18.




CH. 11.]  MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.      77
delineating as characteristic of the Incas, did not
belong to all; and that there was more than one of
the royal line who displayed a full measure of the
bold and unscrupulous spirit of the vulgar conqueror.
The first step of the government, after the reduction of a country, was to introduce there the worship
of the Sun. Temples were erected, and placed
under the care of a numerous priesthood, who expounded to the conquered people the mysteries of
their new faith, and dazzled them by the display of
its rich and stately ceremonial.62  Yet the religion
of the conquered was not treated with dishonor.
The Sun was to be worshipped above all; but the
images of their gods were removed to Cuzco and
established in one of the temples, to hold their rank
among the inferior deities of the Peruvian Pantheon.
Here they remained as hostages, in some sort, for
the conquered nation, which would be the less inclined to forsake its allegiance, when by doing so it
must leave its own gods in the hands of its enemies.63
The Incas provided for the settlement of their
new conquests, by ordering a census to be taken of
the population, and a careful survey to be made of
the country, ascertaining its products, and the character and capacity of its soil.64 A division of the ter62 Sarmiento,  Relacion, MS.,  64 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 13,
cap. 14.               14. - Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
63 Acosta, lib. 5, cap. 12. -   cap. 15.
Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1,
lib. 5, cap. 12.




78          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BOOK I.
ritory was then made on the same principle with that
adopted throughout their own kingdom; and their respective portions were assigned to the Sun, the sovereign, and the people. The amount of the last was
regulated by the amount of the population, but the
share of each individual was uniformly the same. It
may seem strange, that any people should patiently
have acquiesced in an arrangement which involved
such a total surrender of property. But it was a
conquered nation that did so, held in awe, on the
least suspicion of meditating resistance, by armed garrisons, who were established at various commanding
points throughout the country.65 It is probable, too,
that the Incas made no greater changes than was
essential to the new arrangement, and that they assigned estates, as far as possible, to their former
proprietors. The curacas, in particular, were confirmed in their ancient authority; or, when it was found
expedient to depose the existing curaca, his rightful
heir was allowed to succeed him.66   Every respect
was shown to the ancient usages and laws of the
land, as far as was compatible with the fundamental
institutions of the Incas.  It must also be remembered, that the conquered tribes were, many of them,
too little advanced in civilization to possess that attachment to the soil which belongs to a cultivated
nation.67 But, to whatever it be referred, it seems
65 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,  67 Sarmiento has given a very
cap. 19.                 full and interesting account of the
66 Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, singularly humane policy observed
Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 11.  by the Incas in their conquests,




Ca. II.]    MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.               79
probable that the extraordinary institutions of the
Incas were established with little opposition in the
conquered territories.68
Yet the Peruvian sovereigns did not trust altogether to this show of obedience in their new vassals; and, to secure it more effectually, they adopted
some expedients too remarkable to be passed by in
silence. - Immediately after a recent conquest, the
curacas and their families were removed for a time
to Cuzco. Here they learned the language of the
capital, became familiar with the manners and usages
of the court, as well as with the general policy of
government, and experienced such marks of favor
from the sovereign as would be most grateful to their
feelings, and might attach them most warmly to his
person. Under the influence of these sentiments,
they were again sent to rule over their vassals, but
still leaving their eldest sons in the capital, to remain
there as a guaranty for their own fidelity, as well as
to grace the court of the Inca.69
forming a striking contrast with the  68 According to Velasco, even
usual course of those scourges of the powerful state of Quito, suffimankind, whom mankind are wise ciently advanced in civilization to
enough to requite with higher ad- have the law of property well recmiration, even, than it bestows on ognized by its people, admitted the
its benefactors. As Sarmiento, institutions of the Incas " not only
who was President of the Royal without repugnance, but with joy."
Council of the Indies, and came (Hist. de Quito, tom. II. p. 183.)
into the country soon after the But Velasco, a modern authority,
Conquest, is a high authority, and believed easily, - or reckoned on
as his work, lodged in the dark re- his readers' doing so.
cesses of the Escurial, is almost un-  69 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte
known, I have transferred the whole 1, lib. 5, cap. 12; lib. 7, cap. 2.
chapter to Appendix, No. 3.




80         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS   [BOOK I
Another expedient was of a bolder and more
original character. This was nothing less than to
revolutionize the language of the country. South
America, like North, was broken up into a great variety of dialects, or rather languages, having little
affinity with one another. This circumstance occasioned great embarrassment to the government in the
administration of the different provinces, with whose
idioms they were unacquainted. It was determined,
therefore, to substitute one universal language, the
Quichua, - the language of the court, the capital,
and the surrounding country, - the richest and
most comprehensive of the South American dialects.
Teachers were provided in the towns and villages
throughout the land, who were to give instruction to
all, even the humblest classes; and it was intimated
at the same time, that no one should be raised to
any office of dignity or profit, who was unacquainted
with this tongue. The curacas and other chiefs,
who attended at the capital, became familiar with
this dialect in their intercourse with the Court, and,
on their return home, set the example of conversing
in it among themselves. This example was imitated
by their followers, and the Quichua gradually became
the language of elegance and fashion, in the same
manner as the Norman French was affected by all
those who aspired to any consideration in England,
after the Conquest. By this means, while each
province retained its peculiar tongue, a beautiful
medium of communication was introduced, which
enabled the inhabitants of one part of the country




CH. II.]   MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.           81
to hold intercourse with every other, and the Inca
and his deputies to communicate with all. This
was the state of things on the arrival of the Spaniards.  It must be admitted, that history furnishes
few examples of more absolute authority than such
a revolution in the language of an empire, at the
bidding of a master.70
Yet little less remarkable was another device of
the Incas for securing the loyalty of their subjects.
When any portion of the recent conquests showed a
pertinacious spirit of disaffection, it was not uncommon to cause a part of the population, amounting,
it might be, to ten thousand inhabitants or more,
to remove to a distant quarter of the kingdom, occupied by ancient vassals of undoubted fidelity to
the crown. A like number of these last was transplanted to the territory left vacant by the emigrants.
By this exchange, the population was composed of
two distinct races, who regarded each other with an
eye of jealousy, that served as an effectual check on
any mutinous proceeding.     In time, the influence
of the well-affected prevailed, supported, as they
were, by royal authority, and by the silent working
70 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 35; deprender mas lenguas de las suyas
lib. 7, cap. 1, 2. - Ondegardo, propias, los Reyes pudieron tanto
Rel. Seg., MS. -Sarmiento, Re- que salieron con su intencion y
lacion, MS., cap. 55.      ellos tubieron por bien de cumplir
"Aun la Criatura no hubiese su mandado y tan de veras se endejado el Pecho de su Madre quan- tendio en ello que en tiempo de
do le comenzasen i mostrar la pocos arios se savia y usaba unl
Lengua que havia de saber; y aun- lengua en mas de mil y doscientas
que al principio fu6 dificultoso, 6 leguas." Ibid., cap. 21.
muchos se pusieron en no querer
VOL. I.          11




82          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BooK I.
of the national institutions, to which the strange
races became gradually accustomed. A spirit of
loyalty sprang up by degrees in their bosoms, and,
before a generation had passed away, the different
tribes mingled in harmony together as members of
the same community.71   Yet the different races continued to be distinguished by difference of dress;
since, by the law of the land, every citizen was
required to wear the costume of his native province.72 Neither could the colonist, who had been
thus unceremoniously transplanted, return to his
native district. For, by another law, it was forbidden to any one to change his residence without
license.73 He was settled for life. The Peruvian
government prescribed to every man his local habitation, his sphere of action, nay, the very nature
and quality of that action. He ceased to be a free
agent; it might be almost said, that it relieved him
of personal responsibility.
In following out this singular arrangement, the
Incas showed as much regard for the comfort and
convenience of the colonist as was compatible with
the execution of their design. They were careful
that the mitimaes, as these emigrants were styled,
should be removed to climates most congenial with
their own. The inhabitants of the cold countries
71 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. be of great importance to the order
- Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, Parte and right government of the realm."
2, lib. 3, cap. 11.       lib. 6, cap. 16.
72 ", This regulation," says Fa-  73 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
ther Acosta, " the Incas held to




CH. II.]   MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.             83
were not transplanted to the warm, nor the inhabitants of the warm    countries to the cold.74   Even
their habitual occupations were consulted, and the
fisherman was settled in the neighbourhood of the
ocean, or the great lakes; while such lands were
assigned to the husbandman as were best adapted
to the culture with which he was most familiar.75
And, as migration by many, perhaps by most, would
be regarded as a calamity, the government was
careful to show particular marks of favor to the
mitimaes, and, by various privileges and immunities,
to ameliorate their condition, and thus to reconcile
them, if possible, to their lot.75
The Peruvian institutions, though they may have
been modified and matured under successive sovereigns, all bear the stamp of the same original, -were
all cast in the same mould. The empire, strengthening and enlarging at every successive epoch of its
history, was, in its latter days, but the development,
on a great scale, of what it was in miniature at its
commencement, as the infant germ is said to contain
within itself all the ramifications of the future monarch of the forest. Each succeeding Inca seemed
74 " Trasmutaban de las tales  75 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
Provincias la cantidad de gente de  76 The descendants of these
que de ella parecia convenir que mitimaes are still to be found in
saliese, a los cuales mandaban Quito, or were so at the close of the
pasar a poblar otra tierra del tern- last century, according to Velasco,
ple y manera de donde salian, si distinguished by this name from
fria fria, si caliente caliente, en the rest of the population. Hist.
donde les daban tierras, y campos, de Quito, tom. I. p. 175.
y casas, tanto, y mas como dejaron." Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
cap. 19.




84         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.  [BooK I
desirous only to tread in the path, and carry out the
plans, of his predecessor.  Great enterprises, commenced under one, were continued by another, and
completed by a third. Thus, while all acted on a
regular plan, without any of the eccentric or retrograde movements which betray the agency of different individuals, the state seemed to be under the
direction of a single hand, and steadily pursued, as
if through one long reign, its great career of civilization and of conquest.
The ultimate aim of its institutions was domestic
quiet. But it seemed as if this were to be obtained
only by foreign war. Tranquillity in the heart of the
monarchy, and war on its borders, was the condition
of Peru. By this war it gave occupation to a part
of its people, and, by the reduction and civilization
of its barbarous neighbours, gave security to all.
Every Inca sovereign, however mild and benevolent
in his domestic rule, was a warrior, and led his armies in person. Each successive reign extended
still wider the boundaries of the empire. Year
after year saw the victorious monarch return, laden
with spoils, and followed by a throng of tributary
chieftains to his capital. His reception there was a
Roman triumph. The whole of its numerous population poured out to welcome him, dressed in the
gay and picturesque costumes of the different provinces, with banners waving above their heads, and
strewing branches and flowers along the path of the
conqueror. The Inca, borne aloft in his golden chair
on the shoulders of his nobles, moved in solemn




CH. II.]  MILITARY TACTICS AND POLICY.      85
procession, under the triumphal arches that were
thrown across the way, to the great temple of the
Sun. There, without attendants, -for all but the
monarch were excluded from the hallowed precincts,
-the victorious prince, stripped of his royal insignia, barefooted, and with all humility, approached
the awful shrine, and offered up sacrifice and thanksgiving to the glorious Deity who presided over the
fortunes of the Incas. This ceremony concluded,
the whole population gave itself up to festivity;
music, revelry, and dancing were heard in every
quarter of the capital, and illuminations and bonfires
commemorated the victorious campaign of the Inca,
and the accession of a new territory to his empire.77
In this celebration we see much of the character
of a religious festival. Indeed, the character of religion was impressed on all the Peruvian wars. The
life of an Inca was one long crusade against the infidel, to spread wide the worship of the Sun, to reclaim the benighted nations from their brutish superstitions, and impart to them the blessings of a
well-regulated government.  This, in the favorite
phrase of our day, was the "mission " of the Inca
It was also the mission of the Christian conqueror
who invaded the empire of this same Indian potentate. Which of the two executed his mission most
faithfully, history must decide.
Yet the Peruvian monarchs did not show a childish impatience in the acquisition of empire. They
77 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 11, 17; lib. 6,
cap. 55. —Garcilasso, Com. Real., cap. 16.




86         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.  [Boox I
paused after a campaign, and allowed time for the
settlement of one conquest before they undertook
another; and, in this interval, occupied themselves
with the quiet administration of their kingdom, and
with the long progresses, which brought them into
nearer intercourse with their people. During this
interval, also, their new vassals had begun to accommodate themselves to the strange institutions of
their masters. They learned to appreciate the value
of a government which raised them above the physical evils of a state of barbarism, secured them protection of person, and a full participation in all the
privileges enjoyed by their conquerors; and, as they
became more familiar with the peculiar institutions
of the country, habit, that second nature, attached
them the more strongly to these institutions, from
their very peculiarity. Thus, by degrees, and without violence, arose the great fabric of the Peruvian
empire, composed of numerous independent and
even hostile tribes, yet, under the influence of a
common religion, common language, and common
government, knit together as one nation, animated
by a spirit of love for its institutions and devoted
loyalty to its sovereign. What a contrast to the condition of the Aztec monarchy, on the neighbouring
continent, which, composed of the like heterogeneous materials, without any internal principle of cohesion, was only held together by the stern pressure,
from without, of physical force! —Why the Peruvian
monarchy should have fared no better than its rival,
in its conflict with European civilization, will appear
in the following pages.




CHAPTER III.
PERUVIAN RELIGION.- DEITIES. -GORGEOUS TEMPLES. - FESTIVALS.
- VIRGINS OF THE, SUN. - MARRIAGE.
IT is a remarkable fact, that many, if not most,
of the rude tribes inhabiting the vast American continent, however disfigured their creeds may have
been in other respects by a childish superstition, had
attained to the sublime conception of one Great
Spirit, the Creator of the Universe, who, immaterial
in his own nature, was not to be dishonored by an
attempt at visible representation, and who, pervading
all space, was not to be circumscribed within the
walls of a temple. Yet these elevated ideas, so far
beyond the ordinary range of the untutored intellect,
do not seem to have led to the practical consequences that might have been expected; and few
of the American nations have shown much solicitude for the maintenance of a religious worship, or
found in their faith a powerful spring of action.
But, with progress in civilization, ideas more akin
to those of civilized communities were gradually unfolded; a liberal provision was made, and a separate order instituted, for the services of religion,
which were conducted with a minute and magnificent ceremonial, that challenged comparison, in




88          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.    [Booi 1.
some respects, with that of the most polished nations of Christendom. This was the case with the
nations inhabiting the table-land of North America,
and with the natives of Bogota, Quito, Peru, and
the other elevated regions on the great Southern
continent. It was, above all, the case with the Peruvians, who claimed a divine original for the founders of their empire, whose laws all rested on a divine sanction, and whose domestic institutions and
foreign wars were alike directed to preserve and
propagate their faith. Religion was the basis of
their polity, the very condition, as it were, of their
social existence. The government of the Incas, in
its essential principles, was a theocracy.
Yet, though religion entered so largely into the
fabric and conduct of the political institutions of the
people, their mythology, that is, the traditionary legends by which they affected to unfold the mysteries
of the universe, was exceedingly mean and puerile. Scarce one of their traditions - except the
beautiful one respecting the founders of their royal
dynasty-is worthy of note, or throws much light on
their own antiquities, or the primitive history of man.
Among the traditions of importance is one of the
deluge, which they held in common with so many of
the nations in all parts of the globe, and which they
related with some particulars that bear resemblance
to a Mexican legend.1
1 They related, that, after the cave where they had saved theii
deluge, seven personsissued from a selves, and by them the earth was




CH. III.]         PERUVIAN RELIGION.                    89
Their ideas in respect to a future state of being
deserve more attention. They admitted the existence of the soul hereafter, and connected         with
this a belief in the resurrection of the body. They
assigned two distinct places for the residence of
the good and of the wicked, the latter of which
they fixed in the centre of the       earth.   The   good
they supposed were to pass a luxurious life of tranquillity and ease, which comprehended their highest
notions of happiness. The wicked were to expiate
their crimes by ages of wearisome labor.         They associated with these ideas a belief in an evil principle
or spirit, bearing the name of Cupay, whom they did
not attempt to propitiate by sacrifices, and who
seems to have been only a shadowy personification
of sin, that exercised little influence over their
conduct.2
It was this belief in the resurrection of the body,
which led them to preserve the body with so much
solicitude, - by a simple process, however, that, unrepeopled. One of the traditions -Gomara, Hist. de las Ind., cap.
of the Mexicans deduced their de- 123. - Garcilasso, Corn. Real.,
scent, and that of the kindred  Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 2, 7.
tribes, in like manner, from seven  One might suppose that the
persons who came from as many educated Peruvians - if I may so
caves in Aztlan. (Conf. Acosta, speak- imagined the common peolib. 6, cap. 19; lib. 7, cap. 2. -  pie had no souls, so little is said
Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.) The of their opinions as to the condition
story of the deluge is told by dif- of these latter in a future life, while
ferent writers with many variations, they are diffuse on the prospects of
in some of which it is not difficult the higher orders, which they fondto detect the plastic hand of the ly believed were to keep pace with
Christian convert.            their condition here.
2 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
VOL. I.            12




90            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BooK I.
like the elaborate embalming of the Egyptians, consisted in exposing it to the action of the cold, exceedingly dry, and highly rarefied atmosphere of the
mountains.3    As they believed that the occupations
in the future world would have great resemblance to
those of the present, they buried with the deceased
noble  some of his apparel, his utensils, and, fre
quently, his treasures; and completed the        gloomy
ceremony by sacrificing his wives and favorite domestics, to bear him company and do him service in
the happy regions beyond the clouds.4 Vast mounds
of an irregular, or, more frequently, oblong shape,
penetrated by galleries running at right angles to
each other, were raised over the dead, whose
dried bodies or mummies have been found in considerable numbers, sometimes erect, but more often in
the sitting posture, common to the Indian tribes
of both continents. Treasures of great value have
also been occasionally drawn from these monumental deposits, and have stimulated speculators to repeated excavations with the hope of similar goodfortune. It was a lottery like that of searching after
3 Such, indeed, seems to be the  4 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
opinion of Garcilasso, though some  The Licentiate says, that this
writers speak of resinous and other usage continued even after the Conapplications for embalming the quest; and that he had saved the
body. The appearance of the royal life of more than one favorite domummies found at Cuzco, as re- mestic, who had fled to him for
ported both by Ondegardo and Gar- protection, as they were about to
cilasso, makes it probable tha+t no be sacrificed to the Manes of their
foreign substance was employed deceased lords. Ibid., ubi supra
for their preservaton.




CH. 111.]                 DEITIES.                       91
mines, but where the chances have proved still more
against the adventurers.5
The Peruvians, like so many other of the Indian
races, acknowledged a Supreme Being, the Creator
and Ruler of the Universe, whom they adored under
the different names of Pachacamac and Viracocha.6
No temple was raised to this invisible Being, save
one only in the valley which took its name from the
deity himself, not far from the Spanish city of Lima.
Even this temple had existed there before the country came under the sway of the Incas, and was
the  great resort of Indian        pilgrims from     remote
parts of the land; a circumstance which suggests
the idea, that the worship of this Great Spirit,
though countenanced, perhaps, by their accommodating policy, did not originate with the Peruvian
princes.7
5 Yet these sepulchral mines lion of dollars! Vues des Corhave sometimes proved worth the dilleres, p. 29.
digging. Sarmiento speaks of gold  6 Pachacamac  signifies " He
to the value of 100,000 castellanos, who sustains or gives life to the
as occasionally buried with the In- universe." The name of the great
dian lords; (Relacion, MS., cap. deity is sometimes expressed by
57;) and Las Casas- not the best both Pachacamac and Viracocha
authority in numerical estimates-  combined. (See Balboa, Hist. du
says that treasures worth more Perou, chap. 6. —Acosta, lib. 6,
than half a million of ducats had cap. 21.) An old Spaniard finds
been found, within twenty years in the popular meaning of Viraafter the Conquest, in the tombs cocha, " foam of the sea," an argunear Truxillo. (CEuvres, ed. par ment for deriving the Peruvian
Llorente, (Paris, 1822,) tom. II. p. civilization from some voyager from
192.) Baron Humboldt visited the the Old World. Conq. i Pob. del
sepulchre of a Peruvian prince in Piru, MS.
the same quarter of the country,  7 Pedro Pizarro,Descub. yConq.
whence a Spaniard in 1576 drew  MS. - Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.
forth a mass of gold worth a mil- cap. 27.




92           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BooK I
The deity whose worship they especially inculcated, and which they never failed to establish
wherever their banners were known to penetrate,
was the Sun. It was he, who, in a particular manner, presided over the destinies of man; gave light
and warmth to the nations, and life to the vegetable
world; whom they reverenced as the father of their
royal dynasty, the founder of their empire; and
whose temples rose in every city and almost every
village throughout'the land, while his altars smoked
with burnt offerings, - a form of sacrifice peculiar
to the Peruvians among the semi-civilized nations of
the New World.8
Besides the Sun, the Incas acknowledged various
objects of worship in some way or other connected
with this principal deity. Such was the Moon, his
sister-wife; the Stars, revered as part of her heavenly train, -  though the fairest of them, Venus, known
to the Peruvians by the name of Chasca, or the
"youth   with   the long    and  curling   locks," was
adored as the page of the Sun, whom he attends so
closely in his rising and in his setting. They dedicated temples also to the Thunder and Lightning,9
Ulloa notices the extensive ruins quired on American antiquities.
of brick, which mark the proba- (Researches, p. 392.) Might he
ble site of the temple of Pachaca- not have added barbarous nations,
mac, attesting by their present ap- also?
pearance its ancient magnificence  9 Thunder, Lightning, and Thunand strength. Memoires Philoso- derbolt, could be all expressed by
phiques, Historiques, Physiques, the Peruvians in one word, Illapa.
(Paris, 1787,) trad. Fr., p. 78.  Hence some Spaniards have in8 At least, so says Dr. McCulloh; ferred a knowledge of the Trinity
and no better authority can be re- in the natives! " The Devil stole




CH. III.]                    DEITIES.                           93
in whom     they recognized the Sun's dread            ministers,
and to the Rainbow, whom they worshipped as a
beautiful emanation of their glorious deity.10
In addition to these, the subjects of the Incas
enrolled among their inferior deities many objects in
nature, as the elements, the winds, the earth, the
air, great mountains and rivers, which impressed
them with ideas of sublimity and power, or were
supposed     in  some way or other to exercise a mysterious influence over the destinies of man.1 They
all he could," exclaims Herrera, It is contradicted, in a manner, by
with righteous indignation. (Hist. the admission of Garcilasso himself,
General, dec. 5, lib. 4, cap. 5.) that these several objects were all
These, and even rasher conclusions, personified by the Indians as living
(see Acosta, lib. 5, cap. 28,) are beings, and had temples dedicated
scouted by Garcilasso, as inven- to them as such, with their effigies
tions of Indian converts, willing to  delineated in the same manner as
please the imaginations of their was that of the Sun in his dwelling.
Christian teachers.  (Com. Real., Indeed, the effort of the historian to
Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 5, 6; lib. 3, reduce the worship of the Incas to
cap. 21.)  Imposture, on the one   that of the Sun alone is not very
hand, and credulity on the other, reconcilable  with what he elsehave furnished a plentiful harvest where says of the homage paid to
of absurdities, which has been dili- Pachacamac, above all, and to
gently gathered in by the pious Rimac, the great oracle of the comantiquary of a later generation.   mon people. The Peruvian my10 Garcilasso's  assertion, that thology was, probably, not unlike
these heavenly bodies were objects that of Hindostan, where, under
of reverence as holy things, but not two, or at most three, principal
of worship, (Com. Real., Parte 1, deities, were assembled a host of
lib. 2, cap. 1, 23,) is contradicted  inferior ones, to whom the nation
by Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.,-     paid religious homage, as personifi3)ec. de la Aud. Real., MS., -     cations of the different objects in
Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 5, nature.
lib. 4, cap. 4,-  Gomara, Hist. de   It Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
las Ind., cap. 121, —and, I might    These consecrated objects were
add, by almost every writer of au- termed huacas, -a word of most
thority whom   I have consulted. prolific import; since it signified a




94              CIVILIZATION     OF THE INCAS.            [BOOK I.
adopted also a notion, not unlike that professed by
some of the schools of ancient philosophy, that every
thing on earth had       its archetype    or idea, its mother,
as   they   emphatically      styled   it, which      they   held
sacred, as, in some sort, its spiritual essence.'2 But
their system, far from being limited even to these
multiplied    objects of devotion, embraced           within   its
ample folds the numerous deities of the conquered
nations, whose images were transported to the capital, where the burdensome charges of their worship
were defrayed by their respective provinces. It was
a rare stroke of policy in the Incas, who could thus
accommodate their religion to their interests.13
But the worship of the Sun           constituted the pecutemple, a tomb, any natural object agua madre del vinagre, i a cada
remarkable for its size or shape, cosa adoravan destas de su manein short, a cloud of meanings, which  ra."  Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
by their contradictory sense have   13 Pedro  Pizarro, Descub. y
thrown incalculable confusion over Conq., MS.
the writings of historians and trav-  So it seems to have been regardellers.                           ed by the Licentiate Ondegardo.
12 " La orden por donde funda- " E los Idolos estaban en aql galvan sus huacas que ellos llamavan pon grande de la casa del Sol, y
a las Idolatrias hera porque decian  cada Idolo destos tenia su servicio
que todas criava el sol i que les y gastos y mugeres, y en la casa
dava madre por madre que mostra- del Sol le iban a hacer reverencia
van a la tierra, porque decian que  los que venian de su provincis
tenia madre, i tenian 16 echo su  para lo qual e sacrificios que so
vulto i sus adoratorios, i al fuego  hacian proveian de su misma tierra
decian que tambien tenia madre i ordinaria e muy abundantemente
al mais i a las otras sementeras i a  por la misma orden que lo hacian
las ovejas iganado decian que te- quando estaba en la misma provinnian madre, i a la chocha ques el cia, que daba gran autoridad a mi
brevaje que ellos usan decian que  parecer 6 aun fuerza a estos Ingas
el vinagre della hera la madre i lo  que cierto me caus6 gran admira
reverenciavan  i llamavan  mama   cion."  Rel. Seg., MS.




CH. III.]      GORGEOUS TEMPLES.           95
liar care of the Incas, and was the object of their
lavish  expenditure.  The most ancient of the
many temples dedicated to this divinity was in the
Island of Titicaca, whence the royal founders of the
Peruvian line were said to have proceeded. From
this circumstance, this sanctuary was held in peculiar veneration. Every thing which belonged to
it, even the broad fields of maize, which surrounded the temple, and formed part of its domain,
imbibed a portion of its sanctity. The yearly produce was distributed among the different public
magazines, in small quantities to each, as something
that would sanctify the remainder of the store.
Happy was the man who could secure even an ear
of the blessed harvest for his own granary! 14
But the most renowned of the Peruvian temples,
the pride of the capital, and the wonder of the empire, was at Cuzco, where, under the munificence
of successive sovereigns, it had become so enriched,
that it received the name of Coricancha, or " the
Place of Gold." It consisted of a principal building
and several chapels and inferior edifices, covering a
large extent of ground in the heart of the city, and
completely encompassed by a wall, which, with the
edifices, was all constructed of stone. The work
was of the kind already described in the other public buildings of the country, and was so finely executed, that a Spaniard, who saw it in its glory,
assures us, he could call to mind only two edifices
14 Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 25.




96             CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.             [BOOK I.
in Spain, which, for their workmanship, were at all
to be compared with it.'5       Yet this substantial, and,
in some respects, magnificent structure, was thatched
with straw!
The interior of the temple was the most worthy
of admiration. It was literally a mine of gold. On
the western wall was emblazoned a representation
of the deity, consisting of a human countenance,
looking forth from amidst innumerable rays of light,
which emanated from it in every direction, in the
same manner as the sun is often personified with
ius. The figure was engraved on a massive plate
of gold of enormous dimensions, thickly powdered
with emeralds and precious stones.'6 It was so situated in front of the great eastern portal, that the
rays of the morning sun fell directly upon it at its
rising, lighting up the whole apartment with an
effulgence that seemed more than natural, and
which was reflected back from the golden orna15," Tenia este Templo encircui- que liaman la Calahorra que esta
to mas de quatro cientospasos, todo junto con la puente de Cordoba, y
cercado de una muralla fuerte, labra- a una obra que vi en Toledo, cuando
do todo el edificio de cantera muy  fui a presentar la primera parte de
excelente de fina piedra, muy bien  mi Cronica al Principe Dn Felipe.'
puesta y asentada, y algunas pie- Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 24.
dras eran muy grandes y soberbias,  16 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
no tenian mezela de tierra ni cal, -Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap.
sino con el betun que ellos suelen  44, 92.
hacer sus edificios, y estan tan bien  " La figura del Sol, muy grande.
labradas estas piedras que no se les hecha de oro obrada muy primaparece mezcla ni juntura ninguna. mente engastonada en muchas pieEn toda Espana no he visto cosa dras ricas."  Sarmiento, Relacion.
que pueda comparar a estas paredes MS., cap. 24.
y postura de piedra, sino a la torre




CH. III.]       GORGEOUS TEMPLES.               97
ments with which the walls and ceiling were everywhere incrusted.  Gold, in the figurative language
of the people, was " the tears wept by the sun,"17
and every part of the interior of the temple glowed
with burnished plates and studs of the precious
metal. The cornices, which surrounded the walls
of the sanctuary, were of the same costly material;
and a broad belt or frieze of gold, let into the stonework, encompassed the whole exterior of the edifice.1
Adjoining the principal structure were several
chapels of smaller dimensions. One of them was
consecrated to the Moon, the deity held next in
reverence, as the mother of the Incas. Her effigy
was delineated in the same manner as that of the
Sun, on a vast plate that nearly covered one side
of the apartment. But this plate, as well as all the
decorations of the building, was of silver, as suited
to the pale, silvery light of the beautiful planet.
There were three other chapels, one of which was
dedicated to the host of Stars, who formed the
bright court of the Sister of the Sun; another was
consecrated to his dread ministers of vengeance, the
Thunder and the Lightning; and a third, to the Rain17," I al oro asimismo decian medio de ancho i lo mismo tenian
que era lagrimas que el Sol l1ora- por de dentro en cada bohio 6 casa
va." Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. i aposento." (Conq. i Pob. del
18 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., Piru, MS.) " Tenia una cinta de
cap. 24.- Antig. y Monumentos planchas de oro de anchor de mas
del Peru, MS.             de un palmo enlazadas en las pie" Cercada junto a la techumbre dras." Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
de una plancha de oro de palmo i Conq., MS.
VOL. T.          13




98            CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.            [Boox I.
bow, whose many-colored arch spanned the walls
of the edifice with hues almost as radiant as its
own. There were besides several other buildings,
or insulated apartments, for the accommodation of
the numerous priests who officiated in the services
of the temple.19
All the plate, the ornaments, the utensils of every
description, appropriated to the uses of religion,
were of gold or silver. Twelve immense vases of
the latter metal stood on the floor of the great saloon, filled with    grain  of the   Indian   corn;20 the
censers for the perfumes, the ewers which held the
water for sacrifice, the pipes which conducted it
through subterraneous channels into the buildings,
the reservoirs that received it, even the agricultural
implements used in the gardens of the temple, were
all of the same rich materials. The gardens, like
those described, belonging to the royal palaces,
sparkled with flowers of gold and silver, and various
imitations of the vegetable kingdom. Animals, also,
were to be found there, - among which the llama,
with its golden fleece, was most conspicuous, - ex19 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., Sol, segun ellos decian que comicap. 24. - Garcilasso, Corn, Real., ese." Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 21. —Pedro  The original, as the Spanish
Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.  reader perceives, says each of these
20 " El bulto del Sol tenian mui silver vases or bins was as high as
grande de oro, i todo el servicio  a good lance, and so large that two
desta casa era de plata i oro, i men with outspread arms could
tenian doze horones de plata blanca barely encompass them! As this
que dos hombres no abrazarian  might, perhaps, embarrass even the
cada uno quadrados, i eran mas most accommodating faith, I have
altos que una buena pica donde he- preferred not to become responsible
thavan el maiz qne havian de dar al for any particular dimensiers.




CH. III.]          GORGEOUS TEMPLES.                     99
ecuted in the same style, and with a degree of skill,
which, in this instance, probably, did not surpass the
excellence of the material.21
If the reader sees in this fairy picture only the
romantic coloring of some fabulous El Dorado, he
must recall what has been said before in reference
to the palaces of the Incas, and consider that these
"' Houses of the Sun," as they were styled, were the
common reservoir into which flowed all the streams
of public and private benefaction throughout the
empire. Some of the statements, through credulity,
and others, in the desire of exciting admiration, may
be greatly exaggerated; but, in the coincidence of
contemporary testimony, it is not easy to determine
the exact line which should mark the measure of
our skepticism. Certain it is, that the glowing
picture I have given is warranted by those who
saw these buildings in their pride, or shortly after
they  had been     despoiled   by the cupidity of their
countrymen. Many of the costly articles were buried by the natives, or thrown into the waters of
21 Levinus Apollonius, fol. 38. veinte obejas de oro con sus Cor-Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte deros y los Pastores con sus ondas
1, lib. 3, cap. 24. -Pedro Pizarro, y cayados que las guardaban hecho
Descub. y Conq., MS.           de este metal; havia mucha canti" Tenian un Jardin que los Ter- dad de Tinajas de oro y de Plata y
rones eran pedazos de oro fino y  esmeraldas, vasos, ollas y todo geestaban artificiosamente sembrado  nero de vasijas todo de oro fino;
de maizales los quales eran oro asi por otras Paredes tenian esculpidas
las Cafas de ello como las ojas y  y pintadas otras mayores cosas, en
mazorcas, y estaban tan bien plan- fin era uno de los ricos Templos
tados que aunque hiciesen recios que hubo en el mundo."  Sarbientos no se arrancaban. Sin miento, Relacion, MS., tap. 2:.
todo esto tenian hechas mas de




100         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BOOK I.
the rivers and the lakes; but enough remained to
attest the unprecedented opulence of these religious
establishments. Such things as were in their nature portable were speedily removed, to gratify the
craving of the Conquerors, who even tore away the
solid cornices and frieze of gold from the great
temple, filling the vacant places with the cheaper,
but -since it affords no temptation to avarice -
more durable, material of plaster.  Yet even thus
shorn of their splendor, the venerable edifices still
presented an attraction to the spoiler, who found in
their dilapidated walls an inexhaustible quarry for
the erection of other buildings. On the very ground
once crowned by the gorgeous Coricancha rose the
stately church of St. Dominic, one of the most mag
nificent structures of the New World. Fields of
maize and lucerne now bloom on the spot which
glowed with the golden gardens of the temple; and
the friar chants his orisons within the consecrated
precincts once occupied by the Children of the
Sun.22
Besides the great temple of the Sun, there was
a large number of inferior temples and religious
houses in the Peruvian capital and its environs,
amounting, as is stated, to three or four hundred.23
For Cuzco was a sanctified spot, venerated not only
22 Miller's Memoirs, vol. II. pp. legua y media de la redonda qua223, 224.                 trocientos y tantos lugares, donde
23 Herrera, Hist. General, dec. se hacian sacrificios, y se gastava
5, lib. 4, cap. 8.        mucha suma de hacienda en ellos."
" Havia en aquella ciudad y Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.




LH. 1II.]       GORGEOUS TEMPLES.             101
as the abode of the Incas, but of all those deities
who presided over the motley nations of the empire.
It was the city beloved of the Sun; where his worship was maintained in its splendor; " where every
fountain, pathway, and wall," says an ancient chronicler, " was regarded as a holy mystery." 24 And unfortunate was the Indian noble who, at some period
or other of his life, had not made his pilgrimage to
the Peruvian Mecca.
Other temples and religious dwellings were scattered over the provinces; and some of them constructed on a scale of magnificence, that almost
rivalled that of the metropolis. The attendants on
these composed an army of themselves. The whole
number of functionaries, including those of the sacerdotal order, who officiated at the Coricancha
alone, was no less than four thousand.25
At the head of all, both here and throughout the
land, stood the great High-Priest, or Villac Vmu, as
he was called. He was second only to the Inca in
dignity, and was usually chosen from his brothers
or nearest kindred.   He was appointed     by the
monarch, and held his office for life; and he, in
24,, Que aquella ciudad del and menials employed in the faCuzco era casa y morada de Dioses, mous temple of Bilcas, on the route
e ansi no habia en toda ella fuente to Chili, amounted to 40,000!
ni paso ni pared que n6 dixesen (Cronica, cap. 89.) Every thing
que tenia misterio." Ondegardo, relating to these Houses of the
Rel. Seg., MS.           Sun appears to have been on a
25 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.  grand scale. But we may easily
An army, indeed, if, as Cieza de believe this a clerical error for
Leon states, the number of priests 4,000.




102          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.        [BOOK I.
turn, appointed to all the subordinate stations of his
own order. This order was very numerous. Those
members of it who officiated in the House of the
Sun, in Cuzco, were taken exclusively from the sacred race of the Incas. The ministers in the provincial temples were drawn from the families of the
curacas; but the office of high-priest in each district
was reserved for one of the blood royal.        It was
designed by this regulation to preserve the faith in
its purity, and to guard against any departure from
the stately ceremonial which it punctiliously prescribed.26
The sacerdotal order, though numerous; was not
distinguished by any peculiar badge or costume from
the rest of the nation. Neither was it the sole depository of the scanty science of the country, nor
was it charged with the business of instruction, nor
with those parochial duties, if they may so be called,
which bring the priest in contact with the great
body of the people,- as was the case in Mexico.
The cause of this peculiarity may probably be
traced to the existence of a superior order, like
that of the Inca nobles, whose sanctity of birth so
far transcended all human appointments, that they
in a manner engrossed whatever there was of re26 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., estates of the Sun. At other
cap. 27. - Conq. i Pob. del Piru, times, they were to get their supMS.                         port from their own lands, which,
It was only while the priests if he is correct, were assigned to
were engaged in the service of the them in the same manner as to the
temples, that they were maintained, other orders of the nation. Com.
according to Garcilasso, from the Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 8




CH. III.]         FESTIVALS.              103
ligious veneration in the people. They were, in fact,
the holy order of the state. Doubtless, any of them
might, as very many of them did, take on themselves the sacerdotal functions; and their own insignia and peculiar privileges were too well understood to require any further badge to separate them
from the people.
The duties of the priest were confined to ministration in the temple. Even here his attendance
was not constant, as he was relieved after a stated
interval by other brethren of his order, who succeeded one another in regular rotation. His science was
limited to an acquaintance with the fasts and festivals of his religion, and the appropriate ceremonies
which distinguished them. This, however frivolous
might be its character, was no easy acquisition; for
the ritual of the Incas involved a routine of observances, as complex and elaborate as ever distinguished that of any nation, whether pagan or Christian. Each month had its appropriate festival, or
rather festivals. The four principal had reference to
the Sun, and commemorated the great periods of his
annual progress, the solstices and equinoxes. Perhaps the most magnificent of all the national solemnities was the feast of Raymi, held at the period of
the summer solstice, when the Sun, having touched
the southern extremity of his course, retraced his
path, as if to gladden the hearts of his chosen
people by his presence. On this occasion, the Indian nobles from the different quarters of the coun



104        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BOOK I.
try thronged to the capital to take part in the great
religious celebration.
For three days previous, there was a general fast,
and no fire was allowed to be lighted in the dwellings. When the appointed day arrived, the Inca
and his court, followed by the whole population of
the city, assembled at early dawn in the great square
to greet the rising of the Sun. They were dressed
in their gayest apparel, and the Indian lords vied
with each other in the display of costly ornaments
and jewels on their persons, while canopies of gaudy
feather-work and richly tinted stuffs, borne by the
attendants over their heads, gave to the great square,
and the streets that emptied into it, the appearance
of being spread over with one vast and magnificent
awning. Eagerly they watched the coming of their
deity, and, no sooner did his first yellow rays strike
the turrets and loftiest buildings of the capital, than
a shout of gratulation broke forth from the assembled multitude, accompanied by songs of triumph,
and the wild melody of barbaric instruments, that
swelled louder and louder as his bright orb, rising
above the mountain range towards the east, shone
in full splendor on his votaries. After the usual ceremonies of adoration, a libation was offered to the
great deity by the Inca, from a huge golden vase,
filled with the fermented liquor of maize or of maguey, which, after the monarch had tasted it himself,
he dispensed among his royal kindred. These ceremonies completed, the vast assembly was arranged




CH. III.]             FESTIVALS.                   105
in order of procession, and took its way towards the
Coricancha.27
As they entered the street of the sacred edifice,
all divested themselves of their sandals, except the
Inca and his family, who did the same on passing
through the portals of the temple, where none but
these august personages were admitted.23 After a
decent time spent in devotion, the sovereign, attended by his courtly train, again appeared, and
preparations were made to commence the sacrifice. This, with the Peruvians, consisted of animals, grain, flowers, and sweet-scented gums;
sometimes of human beings, on which occasions a
child or beautiful maiden was usually selected as the
victim. But such sacrifices were rare, being reserved to celebrate some great public event, as a
coronation, the birth of a royal heir, or a great victory. They were never followed by those cannibal
repasts familiar to the Mexicans, and to many of
the fierce tribes conquered by the Incas.      Indeed,
the conquests of these princes might well be deemed
a blessing to the Indian nations, if it were only from
their suppression of cannibalism, and the diminution,
under their rule, of human sacrifices.29
27 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS. duction to his own literary pageant.
- Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. Tom. I. chap. 1-4.
27.                           28'" Ningun Indio comun osaba
The reader will find a brilliant, pasar por la calle del Sol calzado:
and not very extravagant, account ni ninguno, aunque fuese mui grand
of the Peruvian festivals in Mar- Senor, entrava en las casas del Sol
montel's romance of Les Incas. con zapatos." Conq. i Pob. del
The French author saw in their Piru, MS.
gorgeous ceremonial a fitting intro-  29 Garcilasso de la Vega flatly
VOL. I.           14




106            CIVILIZATION     OF THE INCAS.            [BOOK 1
At the feast of Raymi, the sacrifice usually offered
was that of the llama; and the priest, after opening
the body of his victim, sought in the appearances
which it exhibited to read the lesson of the mysterious future. If the auguries were unpropitious, a
second victim was slaughtered, in the hope of receiving some more comfortable assurance. The Peruvian augur might have learned a good lesson of
the Roman, - to consider every omen as favorable,
which served the interests of his country.30
A fire was then kindled by means of a condenies that the Incas were guilty  desire to relieve his race from so
of human sacrifices; and maintains, odious an imputation; and we must
on the other hand, that they uni- have charity for him, if he does
formly abolished them   in every  show himself, on some occasions,
country they subdued, where they  where the honor of his country is
had previously existed.   (Com. at stake, "high gravel blind."  It
Real., Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 9, et should be added, in justice to the
alibi.)  But in this material fact Peruvian government, that the best
he is unequivocally contradicted by  authorities concur in the admission,
Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 22, that the sacrifices were few, both
- Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS., -   in number and in magnitude, being
Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas, MS., reserved   for such extraordinary
lib. 2, cap. 8, - Balboa, Hist. du  occasions as those mentioned in the
Perou, chap. 5, 8, - Cieza de     text.
Leon, Cronica, cap. 72,- Onde-      30 " Augurque cum esset, dicere
gardo, Rel. Seg., MS., —Acosta, ausus est, optimis auspiciis ea geri,
lib. 5, cap. 19,- and I might add, quee pro reipublice salute gereren1 suspect, were I to pursue the in- tur."  Cicero, De Senectute.
quiry, by nearly every    ancient   This inspection of the entrails of
writer of authority; some of whom, animals for the purposes of divinahaving come into the country soon  tion is worthy of note, as a most
after the Conquest, while its primi- rare, if not a solitary, instance of the
tive institutions were in vigor, are  kind among the nations of the New
entitled to more deference in a   World, though so familiar in the
matter of this kind than Garcilasso  ceremonial of sacrifice among the
himself. It was natural that the  pagan nations of the Old.
descendant of the Incas should




Ca. III.]          FESTIVALS.                107
cave mirror of polished metal, which, collecting the
rays of the sun into a focus upon a quantity of
dried cotton, speedily set it on fire. It was the
expedient used on the like occasions in ancient
Rome, at least under the reign of the pious Numa.
When the sky was overcast, and the face of the
good deity was hidden from his worshippers, which
was esteemed a bad omen, fire was obtained by
means of friction. The sacred flame was intrusted to the care of the Virgins of the Sun, and
if, by any neglect, it was suffered to go out in
the course of the year, the event was regarded
as a calamity that boded some strange disaster to
the monarchy.31 A burnt offering of the victims was
then made on the altars of the deity. This sacrifice
was but the prelude to the slaughter of a great
number of llamas, part of the flocks of the Sun,
which furnished a banquet not only for the Inca and
his Court, but for the people, who made amends at
these festivals for the frugal fare to which they were
usually condemned. A fine bread or cake, kneaded
of maize flour by the fair hands of the Virgins of the
Sun, was also placed on the royal board, where the
Inca, presiding over the feast, pledged his great
nobles in generous goblets of the fermented liquor of
the country, and the long revelry of the day was
slosed at night by music and dancing. Dancing and
31 " Vigilemque sacraverat ignem,  Romans for kindling the sacred
Excubias divfm mternas."  fire, as concave instruments of
Plutarch, in his life of Numa, de- brass, though not spherical like the
/cribes the reflectors used by the Peruvian, but of a triangular form.




108            CIVIIIZATION OF THE INCAS.              [B, x I
drinking were the favorite pastimes of the Peruvians. These amusements continued for several days,
though the sacrifices terminated on the first. - Such
was the great festival of Raymi; and the recurrence
of this and similar festivities gave relief to the monotonous routine of toil prescribed to the lower
orders of the community.32
In the distribution of bread and wine at this high
festival, the orthodox Spaniards, who first came into
the country, saw a striking resemblance to the
Christian communion;33 as in the practice of confession and penance, which, in a most irregular form,
indeed, seems to       have   been used     by  the   Peruvians, they discerned a coincidence with another of
the sacraments of the Church.34          The good fathers
were fond of tracing such coincidences, which they
considered as the contrivance of Satan, who thus
endeavoured to delude his victims by counterfeiting   the  blessed    rites  of   Christianity.35     Others,
32 Acosta, lib. 5, cap. 28, 29.-  34 Herrera, Hist. General, dec.
Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, 5, lib. 4, cap. 4.-Ondegardo, Rel.
lib. 6, cap. 23.                Prim., MS.
33 " That which is most admi-   " The father of lies would likerable in the hatred and presumption  wise counterfeit the sacrament of
of Sathan is, that he not onely  Confession, and in his idolatries
counterfeited in idolatry and sacri- sought to be honored with cerefices, but also in certain ceremonies, monies very like to the manner of
our sacraments, which Jesus Christ Christians."  Acosta, lib. 5, cap.
our Lord instituted, and the holy  25.
Church uses, having   especially  35 Cieza de Leon, not content
pretended to imitate, in some sort, with many marvellous accounts of
the sacrament of the communion, the influence and real apparition of
which is the most high and divine Satan in the Indian ceremonies,
of all others."  Acosta, lib. 5, has garnished his volume with nucap. 23.                        merous wood-cuts representing the




CH. III.]          VIRGINS OF THE SUN.                    109
in a different vein, imagined that they saw in such
analogies the evidence, that some of the primitive
teachers of the Gospel, perhaps an apostle himself, had  paid a visit to these distant regions, and
scattered   over them     the seeds of religious truth.36
But it seems hardly necessary to invoke the Prince
of Darkness, or the intervention of the blessed saints,
to account for coincidences which have existed in
countries far removed from the light of Christianity,
and in ages, indeed, when its light had not yet
risen on the world. It is much more reasonable to
refer such casual points of resemblance to the general constitution of man, and the necessities of his
moral nature.37
Another singular analogy with Roman Catholic
institutions is presented by the Virgins of the Sun,
the " elect," as they were called,38 to whom I have
Prince of Evil in bodily presence then, would seem to have divided
with the usual accompaniments of the New World, at least the civiltail, claws, &c., as if to reenforce ized portions of it, between them.
the homilies in his text! The How they came, whether by BehrPeruvian saw in his idol a god. ing's Straits, or directly across
His Christian conqueror saw in it the Atlantic, we are not informed.
the Devil. One may be puzzled to Velasco- a writer of the eighdecide which of the two might lay teenth century! - has little doubt
claim to the grossest superstition.  that they did really come. Hist.
36 Piedrahita, the historian of de Quito, tom. I. pp. 89, 90.
the Muyscas, is satisfied that this  37 The subject is illustrated by
apostle must have been St. Bar- some examples in the " History
tholomew, whose travels were of the Conquest of Mexico," vol
known to have been extensive. III., Appendix, No. 1.; since the
(Conq. de Granada, Parte 1, lib. 1, same usages in that country led to
cap. 3.)  The Mexican antiquaries precisely the same rash conclusions
consider St. Thomas as having had  among the Conquerors.
charge of the mission to the people  38 Llamavase Casa de Escogiof Anahuac. These two apostles, das; porque las escogian, 6 por




110         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BooK I.
already had occasion to refer. These were young
maidens, dedicated to the service of the deity, who,
at a tender age, were taken from their homes, and
introduced into convents, where they were placed
under the care of certain elderly matrons, mamaconas, who had grown grey within their walls.3
Under these venerable guides, the holy virgins were
instructed in the nature of their religious duties.
They were employed in spinning and embroidery,
and, with the fine hair of the vicuna, wove the hangings for the temples, and the apparel for the Inca
and his household.4~ It was their duty, above all, to
watch over the sacred fire obtained at the festival of
Raymi. From the moment they entered the establishment, they were cut off from all connection with
the world, even with their own family and friends.
No one but the Inca, and the Coya or queen, might
enter the consecrated precincts. The greatest attention was paid to their morals, and visitors were
sent every year to, inspect the institutions, and to
report on the state tof their discipline.4' Woe to the
unhappy maiden who was detected in an intrigue!
By the stern law of the Incas, she was to be buried
alive, her lover was to be strangled, and the town or
village to which he belonged was to be razed to the
Linage, 6 por Hermosura." Gar- noticed, meaning "mother." See
cilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1,
4, cap. 1.                lib. 4, cap. 1.
39 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.  40 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
The word mamacona signified Conq., MS.
"matron"; mama, the first half  41 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.
of this compound word, as already




LH. 1II.]         VIRGINS OF THE SUN.                   111
ground, and    "sowed with stones," as if to efface
every memorial of his existence.42      One is astonished
to find so close a resemblance between the institutions
of the American Indian, the ancient Roman, and the
modern Catholic! Chastity and purity of life are
virtues in woman, that would seem to be of equal
estimation with the barbarian and with the civilized.
-Yet the ultimate destination of the inmates of
these religious houses was materially different.
The great establishment at Cuzco consisted wholly of maidens of the royal blood, who amounted, it
is said, to no less than fifteen hundred. The provincial convents were supplied from the daughters
of the curacas and inferior nobles, and, occasionally,
where a girl was recommended by great personal
attractions, from the lower classes of the people.43
The "Houses of the Virgins of the Sun " consisted
of low ranges of stone buildings, covering a large
42 Balboa, Hist. du Perou, chap. little claim to the reputation of Ves9.- Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, tals. (See Pedro Pizarro, Descub.
Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 11. —Garci- y Conq., MS. - Gomara, Hist. de
lasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, las Ind., cap. 121.) Such impucap. 3.                       tations are common enough on the
According to the historian of the inhabitants of religious houses,
Incas, the terrible penalty was whether pagan or Christian. They
never incurred by a single lapse on are contradicted in the present inthe part of the fair sisterhood; stance by the concurrent testimony
though, if it had been, the sover- of most of those who had the best
eign, he assures us, would have opportunity of arriving at truth,
" exacted it to the letter, with as and are made particularly improblittle compunction as he would able by the superstitious reverence
have drowned a puppy."  (Cor. entertained for the Incas.
Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 3.)  43 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
Other writers contend, on the con- Conq., MS. - Garcilasso, Corn.
trary, that these Virgins had very Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 1.




112        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.    [BooK I.
extent of ground, surrounded by high walls, which
excluded those within entirely from observation.
They were provided with every accommodation for
the fair inmates, and were embellished in the same
sumptuous and costly manner as the palaces of the
Incas, and the temples; for they received the particular care of government, as an important part of
the religious establishment.44
Yet the career of all the inhabitants of these
cloisters was not confined within their narrow walls.
Though Virgins of the Sun, they were brides of the
Inca, and, at a marriageable age, the most beautiful
among them were selected for the honors of his bed,
and transferred to the royal seraglio. The full complement of this amounted in time not only to hundreds, but thousands, who all found accommodations
in his different palaces throughout the country.
When the monarch was disposed to lessen the
number of his establishment, the concubine with
whose society he was willing to dispense returned,
not to her former monastic residence, but to her own
home; where, however humble might be her original condition, she was maintained in great state,
and, far from being dishonored by the situation she
had filled, was held in universal reverence as the
Inca's bride.45
The great nobles of Peru were allowed, like their
sovereign, a plurality of wives. The people, gen44 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 5. - Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1,
- Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 44. lib. 4, cap. 4. -Montesinos, Mem.
45 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS. Antiguas, MS., lib. 2, cap. 19.




(II. III.]           MARRIAGE.                   1 l
erally, whether by law, or by necessity stronger than
law, were more happily limited to one. Marriage
was conducted in a manner that gave it quite as
original a character as belonged to the other institutions of the country. On an appointed day of the
year, all those of a marriageable age -which, having
reference to their ability to take charge of a family,
in the males was fixed at not less than twenty-four
years, and in the women at eighteen or twentywere called together in the great squares of their respective towns and villages, throughout the empire.
The Inca presided in person over the assembly of his
own kindred, and taking the hands of the different
couples who were to be united, he placed them within
each other, declaring the parties man and wife. The
same was done by the curacas towards all persons of
their own or inferior degree in their several districts.
This was the simple form of marriage in Peru. No
one was allowed to select a wife beyond the community to which he belonged, which generally comprehended all his own kindred; 46 nor was any but the
sovereign authorized to dispense with the law of
nature - or at least, the usual law of nations -  so
far as to marry his own sister.47  No marriage was
46 By the strict letter of the law, oned of kin to one another. Corn
according to Garcilasso, no one Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 8.
was to marry out of his own line-  47 Fernandez, Hist. del Peru,
age. But this narrow rule had a Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 9.
most liberal interpretation, since  This practice, so revolting to our
all of the same town, and even feelings that it might well be
province, he assures us, were reck- deemed to violate the law of nature,
VOL. I.          15




114        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK I.
esteemed valid without the consent of the parents;
and the preference of the parties, it is said, was also
to be consulted; though, considering the barriers
imposed by the prescribed age of the candidates, this
must have been within rather narrow and whimsical
limits. A dwelling was got ready for the new-married pair at the charge of the district, and the prescribed portion of land assigned for their maintenance. The law of Peru provided for the future, as
well as for the present.  It left nothing to chance.
- The simple ceremony of marriage was followed
by general festivities among the friends of the parties, which lasted several days; and as every
wedding took place on the same day, and as there
were few families who had not some one of their
members or their kindred personally interested, there
was one universal bridal jubilee throughout the
empire.48
The extraordinary regulations respecting marriage
under the Incas are eminently characteristic of the
genius of the government; which, far from limiting
itself to matters of public concern, penetrated into
the most private recesses of domestic life, allowing
no man, however humble, to act for himself, even in
those personal matters in which none but himself,
or his family at most. might be supposed to be intermust not, however, be regarded as  48 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
altogether peculiar to the Incas, - Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1,
since it was countenanced by some lib. 6, cap. 36. - Dec. de la Aud
of the most polished nations of an- Real., MS. - Montesinos, Mem
tiquity.                  Antiguas, MS., lib. 2, cap. 6.




CH. III.]          MARRIAGE.                lib
ested. No Peruvian was too low for the fostering
vigilance of government.  None was so high that
he was not made to feel his dependence upon it in
every act of his life. His very existence as an individual was absorbed in that of the community. His
hopes and his fears, his joys and his sorrows, the
tenderest sympathies of his nature, which would
most naturally shrink from observation, were all to
be regulated by law. He was not allowed even to
be happy in his own way. The government of the
Incas was the mildest, —but the most searching
of despotisms.




CHAPTER IV.
EDUCATION. - QUIPUS. -ASTRONOMY. -AGRICULTURE. -AQUEDUCTS.
- GUANO. - IMPORTANT ESCULENTS.
" SCIENCE was not intended for the people; but
for those of generous blood. Persons of low degree
are only puffed up by it, and rendered vain and
arrogant.    Neither should    such  meddle with     the
affairs of government; for this would bring high
offices into disrepute, and cause detriment to the
state."' Such was the favorite maxim, often repeated, of Tupac Inca Yupanqui, one of the most
renowned of the Peruvian sovereigns. It may seem
strange that such a maxim should ever have been
proclaimed in the New World, where popular institutions have been established on a more extensive
scale than was ever before witnessed; where government rests wholly on the people; and education
- at least, in the great northern division of the continent -is mainly directed to qualify the people for
1," No es licito, que ensenen a aprendan los Oficios de sus Padres;
los hijos de los Plebeios, las Cien- que el Mandar, y Governar no es
cias, que pertenescen a los Gene- de Plebeios, que es hacer agravio
rosos, y no mas; porque como al Oficio, y a la Republica, encoGente baja, no se eleven, y enso- mendarselaa Gentecomun." Garbervezcan, y menoscaben, y apo- cilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib.
quen la Republica bastales, que 8, cap. 8.




CH. IV.]          EDUCATION.              117
the duties of government.  Yet this maxim was
strictly conformable to the genius of the Peruvian
monarchy, and may serve as a key to its habitual
policy; since, while it watched with unwearied solicitude over its subjects, provided for their physical
necessities, was mindful of their morals, and showed,
throughout, the affectionate concern of a parent for
his children, it yet regarded them only as children,
who were never to emerge from the state of pupilage, to act or to think for themselves, but whose
whole duty was comprehended in the obligation of
implicit obedience.
Such was the humiliating condition of the people under the Incas, while the numerous families
of the blood royal enjoyed the benefit of all the
light of education, which the civilization of the
country could afford; and, long after the Conquest,
the spots continued to be pointed out where the
seminaries had existed for their instruction. These
were placed under the care of the amautas, or
" wise men," who engrossed the scanty stock of
science - if science it could be called - possessed
by the Peruvians, and who were the sole teachers
of youth. It was natural that the monarch should
take a lively interest in the instruction of the young
nobility, his own kindred. Several of the Peruvian
princes are said to have built their palaces in the
neighbourhood of the schools, in order that they
might the more easily visit them and listen to the
lectures of the amautas, which they occasionally re



118         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [Boor [.
inforced by a homily of their own.2 In these schools,'he royal pupils were instructed in all the different
kinds of knowledge in which their teachers were
versed, with especial reference to the stations they
were to occupy in after-life. They studied the laws.
and the principles of administering the government,
in which many of them were to take part. They
were initiated in the peculiar rites of their religion,
most necessary to those who were to assume the
sacerdotal functions. They learned also to emulate
the achievements of their royal ancestors by listening to the chronicles compiled by the amautas.
They were taught to speak their own dialect with
purity and elegance; and they became acquainted
with the mysterious science of the quipus, which
supplied the Peruvians with the means of communicating their ideas to one another, and of transmitting them to future generations.3
The quipu was a cord about two feet long, composed of different colored threads tightly twisted together, from which a quantity of smaller threads
were suspended in the manner of a fringe. The
threads were of different colors and were tied into
knots.  The word quipu, indeed, signifies a knot.
The colors denoted sensible objects; as, for instance, white represented silver, and yellow, gold.
They sometimes also stood for abstract ideas. Thus,
2 Ibid., Parte 1, lib 7, cap. 10.  royal ancestors, which had been
The descendant of the Incas built in the vicinity of the schools,
notices the remains, visible in his for more easy access to them.
day, of two of the palaces of his  3 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 19.




CH. IV.]             QUIPUS.                 119
zohite signified peace, and red, war.  But the quipus
were chiefly used for arithmetical purposes. The
knots served instead of ciphers, and could be corn
lined in such a manner as to represent numbers to
an' amount they required.  By means of these they
went through their calculations with great rapidity,
and the Spaniards who first visited the country bear
testimony to their accuracy.4
Officers were established in each of the districts,
who, under the title of quipucamayus, or " keepers
of the quipus," were required to furnish the government with information on various important matters.
One had charge of the revenues, reported the quantity
of raw material distributed among the laborers, the
quality and quantity of the fabrics made from it, and
the amount of stores, of various kinds, paid into the
royal magazines. Another exhibited the register of
births and deaths, the marriages, the number of those
qualified to bear arms, and the like details in reference to the population of the kingdom.  These returns were annually forwarded to the capital, where
they were submitted to the inspection of officers acquainted with the art of deciphering these mystic
records. The government was thus provided with
a valuable mass of statistical information, and the
skeins of many-colored threads, collected and carefully preserved, constituted what might be called
the national archives.5
4 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. -  5 Ondegardo expresses his astonSarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 9. ishment at the variety of objects
-Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 8.- Garci- embraced by these simple records,
lasso, Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 8.  " hardly credible by one who had




120           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BooK I.
But, although the quipus sufficed for all the purposes of arithmetical computation demanded by the
Peruvians, they were incompetent to represent the
manifold ideas and images which are expressed by
writing. Even here, however, the invention was
not without its use. For, independently of the
direct representation of simple objects, and even of
abstract ideas, to a very limited extent, as above
noticed, it afforded great help to the memory by
way of association. The peculiar knot or color, in
this way, suggested what it could not venture to
represent; in the same manner- to borrow the
homely illustration of an old writer - as the number of the Commandment calls to mind the Commandment itself. The quipus, thus used, might be
regarded as the Peruvian system of mnemonics.
Annalists were appointed in each of the principal
communities, whose business it was to record the
most important events which occurred in them.
Other functionaries of a higher character, usually
the amautas, were intrusted with the history of the
empire, and were selected to chronicle the great
not seen them." " En aquella claridad de los estatutos que en
ciudad se hallaron muchos viejos tiempo de cada uno se havian pueoficiales antiguos del Inga, asi de sto." (Rel. Prim., MS.) (See
1a religion, como del Govierno, y also Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
otra cosa que no pudiera creer sino cap. 9. -Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 8.
la viera, que por hilos y nudos se - Garcilasso, Parte 1, lib. 6, cap.
hallan figuradas las leyes, y esta- 8, 9.) A vestige of the quipus is
tutos asi de lo uno como de lo otro, still to be found in some parts of
y las sucesiones de los Reyes y Peru, where the shepherds keep
tiempo que governaron: y hallose the tallies of their numerous flocks
lo que todo esto tenian a su cargo by means of this ancient arithmetic.
que no fue poco, y aun tube alguna




Ca. IV.]            QUIPUS.               121
deeds of the reigning Inca, or of his ancestors.'
The narrative, thus concocted, could be communi
cated only by oral tradition; but the quipus served
the chronicler to arrange the incidents with method,
and to refresh his memory. The story, once treasured up in the mind, was indelibly impressed there
by frequent repetition. It was repeated by the
amauta to his pupils, and in this way history, con
veyed partly by oral tradition, and partly by arbitrary
signs, was handed down from generation to generation, with sufficient discrepancy of details, but with
a general conformity of outline to the truth.
The Peruvian quipus were, doubtless, a wretched
substitute for that beautiful contrivance, the alphabet, which, employing a few simple characters as the
representatives of sounds, instead of ideas, is able
to convey the most delicate shades of thought that
ever passed through the mind of man. The Peruvian invention, indeed, was far below that of the
hieroglyphics, even below the rude picture-writing
of the Aztecs; for the latter art, however incompetent
to convey abstract ideas, could depict sensible objects with tolerable accuracy. It is evidence of the
total ignorance in which the two nations remained
of each other, that the Peruvians should have borrowed nothing of the hieroglyphical system of the
Mexicans, and this, notwithstanding that the existence of the maguey plant, agave, in South America
might have furnished them with the very material
6 Ibid., ubi supra.
VOL. I.        16




122        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BooK I
used by the Aztecs for the construction of their
maps.7
It is impossible to contemplate without interest
the struggles made by different nations, as they
emerge from barbarism, to supply themselves with
some visible symbols of thought,- that mysterious
agency by which the mind of the individual may be
put in communication with the minds of a whole
community. The want of such a symbol is itself
the greatest impediment to the progress of civilization. For what is it but to imprison the thought,
which has the elements of immortality, within the
bosom of its author, or of the small circle who come
in contact with him, instead of sending it abroad to
give light to thousands, and to generations yet unborn! Not only is such a symbol an essential element of civilization, but it may be assumed as the
very criterion of civilization; for the intellectual
advancement of a people will keep pace pretty nearly
with its facilities for intellectual communication.
Yet we must be careful not to underrate the real
value of the Peruvian system; nor to suppose that
the quipus were as awkward an instrument, in the
hand of a practised native, as they would be in ours.
We know the effect of habit in all mechanical operations, and the Spaniards bear constant testimony
7 Ibid., ubi supra.- Dec. de la ored beads strung together -in
A ud. Real., MS. - Sarmiento, familiar use among the North
Relacion, MS., cap. 9.    American tribes, for commemoratYet the quipus must be allowed ing treaties, and for other purto bear some resemblance to the poses.
nelts of wampum -made of col



CH. IV.]               QUIPUS.                    123
to the adroitness and accuracy of the Peruvians in
this. Their skill is not more surprising than the
facility with which habit enables us to master the
contents of a printed page, comprehending thousands
of separate characters, by a single glance, as it
were, though each character must require a distinct recognition by the eye, and that, too, without
breaking the chain of thought in the reader's mind.
We must not hold the invention of the quipus too
lightly, when we reflect that they supplied the
means of calculation demanded for the affairs of a
great nation, and that, however insufficitnt, they
afforded no little help to what aspired to the credit
of literary composition.
The office of recording the national annals was
not wholly confined to the amautas. It was assumed in part by the haravecs, or poets, who selected
the most brilliant incidents for their songs or ballads,
which were chanted at the royal festivals and at the
table of the Inca.8 In this manner, a body of traditional minstrelsy grew up, like the British and Spanish ballad poetry, by means of which the name of
many a rude chieftain, that might have perished for
want of a chronicler, has been borne down the tide
of rustic melody to later generations.
8 Dec. de la Aud. Real., MS.-  of the Norman trouvlre. GarciGarcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lasso has translated one of the little
lib. 2, cap. 27.           lyrical pieces of his countrymen.
The word haravec signified " in- It is light and lively; but one short
ventor" or "finder"; and in his specimen affords no basis for gentitle, as well as in his functions, eral criticism.
the minstrel-poet may remind us




124          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BOOK I
Yet history may be thought not to gain much by
this alliance with poetry; for the domain of the
poet extends over an ideal realm peopled with the
shadowy forms of fancy, that bear little resemblance
to the rude realities of life. The Peruvian annals
may be deemed to show somewhat of the effects of
this union, since there is a tinge of the marvellous
spread over them down to the very latest period,
which, like a mist before the reader's eye, makes it
difficult to distinguish between fact and fiction.
The poet found a convenient instrument for his
purposes in the beautiful Quichua dialect. We have
already seen the extraordinary measures taken by
the Incas for propagating their language throughout
their empire. Thus naturalized in the remotest
provinces, it became enriched by a variety of exotic
words and idioms, which, under the influence of
the Court and of poetic culture, if I may so express myself, was gradually blended, like some finished mosaic made up of coarse and disjointed
materials, into one   harmonious whole.       The Quichua became the most comprehensive and various,
as well as the most elegant, of the South American
dialects.9
9 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.  Espanoles haver esta lengua pues
Sarmiento justly laments that his podian con ella andar por todas
countrymen should have suffered partes en algunas de las quales ya
this dialect, which might have se va perdiendo." Relacion,MS.,
proved so serviceable in their inter- cap. 21.
course with the motley tribes of the  According to Velasco, the Incas,
empire, to fall so much out of use on arriving with their conquering
as it has done. " Y con tanto digo legions at Quito, were astonished
que fue harto beneficio para los to find a dialect of the Quichua




CH. 1V.]                QUIPUS.                      125
Besides the compositions already noticed, the Peruvians, it is said, showed some talent for theatrical
exhibitions; not those barren pantomimes which,
addressed simply to the eye, have formed the amusement of more than one rude nation. The Peruvian
pieces aspired to the rank of dramatic compositions,
sustained by character and dialogue, founded sometimes on themes of tragic interest, and at others on
such as, from their light and social character, belong
to comedy.10 Of the execution of these pieces we
have now no means of judging. It was probably
rude enough, as befitted an unformed people. But,
whatever may have been the execution, the mere
conception of such an amusement is a proof of refinement that honorably distinguishes the Peruvian
from the other American races, whose pastime was
war, or the ferocious sports that reflect the image
of it.
The intellectual character of the Peruvians, indeed, seems to have been marked rather by a tendency to refinement than by those hardier qualities
which insure success in the severer walks of science.
In these they were behind several of the semispoken there, although it was un- of Quito and Peru. Yet his book
known over much of the interme- betrays an obvious anxiety to set
diate country; a singular fact, if the pretensions of his own country
true. (Hist. de Quito, tom. I. in the most imposing point of view,
p. 185.) The author, a native of and he frequently hazards asserthat country, had access to some tions with a confidence that is not
rare sources of information; and well calculated to secure that of his
his curious volumes show an inti- readers.
mate analogy between the science  10 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., ubi
and social institutions of the people supra.




126        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BOOK I.
civilized nations of the New   World.   They had
some acquaintance with geography, so far as related
to their own empire, which was indeed extensive;
and they constructed maps with lines raised on them
to denote the boundaries and localities, on a similar
principle with those formerly used by the blind. In
astronomy, they appear to have made but moderate
proficiency. They divided the year into twelve lunar
months, each of which, having its own name, was distinguished by its appropriate festival." They had,
also, weeks; but of what length, whether of seven,
nine, or ten days, is uncertain.  As their lunar year
would necessarily fall short of the true time, they rectified their calendar by solar observations made by
means of a number of cylindrical columns raised on
the high lands round Cuzco, which served them for
taking azimuths; and, by measuring their shadows,
they ascertained the exact times of the solstices.
The period of the equinoxes they determined by the
help of a solitary pillar, or gnomon, placed in the
centre of a circle, which was described in the area of
the great temple, and traversed by a diameter that
was drawn from east to west.   When the shadows
were scarcely visible under the noontide rays of the
sun, they said that " the god sat with all his light
upon the column."12   Quito, which lay immediately
11 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS. months, with their appropriate ocFernandez, who differs from cupations. Hist. del Peru, Parte 2,
most authorities in dating the com- lib. 3, cap. 10.
meacement of the year from June,  12 Garcilawso, Con. Real., Part
gives the names of the several 1, lib., cap. a2-26.




CH. IV.]              ASTRONOMY.                      127
under the equator, where the vertical rays of the sun
threw no shadow at noon, was held in especial veneration as the favored abode of the great deity. The
period of the equinoxes was celebrated by public
rejoicings. The pillar was crowned by the golden
chair of the Sun, and, both then and at the solstices,
the columns were hung with garlands, and offerings
of flowers and fruits were made, while high festival
was kept throughout the empire. By these periods
the Peruvians regulated their religious rites and ceremonial, and prescribed the nature of their agricultural labors. The year itself took its departure from
the date of the winter solstice.13
This meagre account embraces nearly all that has
come down to us of Peruvian astronomy. It may
seem strange that a nation, which had proceeded
thus far in its observations, should have gone no
farther; and that, notwithstanding its general advance in civilization, it should in this science have
fallen so far short, not only of the Mexicans, but of
the Muyscas, inhabiting the same elevated regions
of the great southern plateau with themselves.
The Spanish conquerors threw  ence, was erected by the famous
down these pillars, as savouring of Toscanelli,- for the purpose of
idolatry in the Indians. Which  determining the solstices, and reguof the two were best entitled to the lating the festivals of the Church,name of barbarians?           about the year 1468; perhaps at
13 Betanzos, Nar. de los Ingas, no very distant date from that of
MS., cap. 16. -Sarmiento, Rela- the similar astronomical contrivance
cion, MS., cap. 23.- Acosta, lib. of the American Indian. See Ti6, cap. 3.                    raboschi, Historia della Letteratura
The most celebrated gnomon in Italiana, tom. VI. lib. 2, cap. 2,
Europe, that raised on the dome sec. 38.
of the metropolitan church of Flor



128           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS             [BOOK I.
These latter regulated their calendar on the same
general plan of cycles and periodical series as the
Aztecs, approaching yet nearer to the system pursued by the people of Asia.'4
It might have been expected that the Incas, the
boasted children of the Sun, would have made a
particular study of the phenomena of the heavens,
and have constructed a calendar on principles as
scientific as that of their semi-civilized neighbours.
One historian, indeed, assures us that they threw
their years into cycles of ten, a hundred, and a
thousand years, and that by these cycles they regulated their chronology.'5      But this    assertion -   not
improbable in itself- rests on a writer but little
gifted with the spirit of criticism, and is counterbalanced by the silence of every higher and earlier
authority, as well as by the absence of any monument, like those found among other American nations, to attest the existence of such a calendar
14 A tolerably meagre account  15 Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas,
-yet as full, probably, as authori- MS., lib. 2, cap. 7.
ties could warrant- of this inter-  " Renov6 la computacion de los
esting people has been given by tiempos, que se iba perdiendo, y
Piedrahita, Bishop of Panama, in se contaron en su Reynado los afos
the first two Books of his Historia por 365 dias y seis horas; a los aiios
General de las Conquistas del Nue- aiadi6 decadas de diez afos, a cada
vo Regno de Granada, (Madrid, diez decadas una centuria de 100
1688.) -M. de Humboldt was for- aiios, y a cada diez centurias una
tunate in obtaining a MS., com- capachoata 6 Jutiphuacan, que son
posed by a Spanish ecclesiastic 1000 ainos, que quiere decir el
resident in Santa F6 de Bogota, in grande ano del Sol; asi contaban
relation to the Muysca calendar, of los siglos y los sucesos memorables
which the Prussian philosopher has de sus Reyes." Ibid., loc. cit.
given a large and luminous analysis. Vues des CordillUres, p. 244.




CH. IV.]            ASTRONOMY.                  129
The inferiority of the Peruvians may be, perhaps, in
part explained by the fact of their priesthood being
drawn exclusively from the body of the Incas, a
privileged order of nobility, who had no need, by
the assumption of superior learning, to fence themselves round from the approaches of the vulgar.
The little true science possessed by the Aztec priest
supplied him with a key to unlock the mysteries of
the heavens, and the false system of astrology which
he built upon it gave him credit as a being who had
something of divinity in his own nature. But the
Inca noble was divine by birth. The illusory study
of astrology, so captivating to the unenlightened
mind, engaged no share of his attention.   The only
persons in Peru, who claimed the power of reading
the mysterious future, were the diviners, men who,
combining with their pretensions some skill in the
healing art, resembled the conjurors found among
many of the Indian tribes. But the office was held
in little repute, except among the lower classes, and
was abandoned to those whose age and infirmity
disqualified them for the real business of life.16
The Peruvians had knowledge of one or two constellations, and watched the motions of the planet
Venus, to which, as we have seen, they dedicated
16 "L Ansi mismo les hicieron dichos sino fuesen viejos d viejas,
senalar gente para hechizeros que y personas inaviles para travajar,
tambien es entre ellos, oficio publi- como mancos, cojos 6 contrechos,
co y conoscido en todos,..... los y gente asi a quien faltava las
diputados para ello no lo tenian fuerzas para ello." Opdegardo,
por travajo, por que ninguno podia Rel. Seg., MS.
tener semejante oficio como los
VOL. I.          17




130        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.     [Boox 1.
altars. But their ignorance of the first principles
of astronomical science is shown by their ideas of
eclipses, which, they supposed, denoted some great
derangement of the planet; and when the moon
labored under one of these mysterious infirmities,
they sounded their instruments, and filled the air
with shouts and lamentations, to rouse her from her
lethargy.  Such puerile conceits as these form a
striking contrast with the real knowledge of the
Mexicans, as displayed in their hieroglyphical maps,
in which the true cause of this phenomenon is plainly depicted.l7
But, if less successful in exploring the heavens,
the Incas must be admitted to have surpassed every
other American race in their dominion over the
earth. Husbandry was pursued by them on principles that may be truly called scientific. It was the
basis of their political institutions. Having no foreign commerce, it was agriculture that furnished
them with the means of their internal exchanges,
their subsistence, and their revenues. We have seen
their remarkable provisions for distributing the land
in equal shares among the people, while they required every man, except the privileged orders, to
assist in its cultivation.  The Inca himself did not
disdain to set the example. On one of the great
annual festivals, he proceeded to the environs of
Cuzco, attended by his Court, and, in the presence
of all the people, turned up the earth with a gold17 See Codex Tel.-Remensis, Part 4, P1. 22, ap. Antiquities of
Mexico, vol. I. London. 1829.




uH. IV.]             AQUEDUCTS.                   131
en plough, - or an instrument that served as such,
-  thus consecrating the occupation of the husbandman as one worthy to be followed by the Children of the Sun.'8
The patronage of the government did not stop
with this cheap display of royal condescension, but
was shown in the most efficient measures for facilitating the labors of the husbandman. Much of the
country along the sea-coast suffered from want of
water, as little or no rain fell there, and the few
streams, in their short and hurried course from the
mountains, exerted only a very limited influence on
the wide extent of territory. The soil, it is true,
was, for the most part, sandy and sterile; but many
places were capable of being reclaimed, and, indeed, needed only to be properly irrigated to be
susceptible of extraordinary production. To these
spots water was conveyed by means of canals and
subterraneous aqueducts, executed on a noble scale.
They consisted of large slabs of freestone nicely
fitted together without cement, and discharged a
volume of water sufficient, by means of latent ducts
or sluices, to moisten the lands in the lower level,
18 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., per la tierra, i lo mismo los demas
cap. 16.                    seiiores, para que de ali adelante
The nobles, also, it seems, at en todo su seforio hiciesen lo mismo,
this high festival, imitated the ex- i sin que el Inga hiciese esto no
ample of their master. "Pasadas avia Indio que osase romper la
todas las fiestas, en la ultima lleva- tierra, ni pensavan que produjese
van muchos arados de manos, los si el Inga no la rompia primero i
quales antiguamente heran de oro; esto vaste quanto a las fiestas."
i echos los oficios, tomava el Inga Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
un arado i comenzava con el a rom



132           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BOOK 1.
through which they passed. Some of these aqueducts were of great length. One that traversed the
district of Condesuyu measured between four and
five hundred miles. They were brought from some
elevated lake or natural reservoir in the heart of the
mountains, and were fed at intervals by other basins
which   lay in their route     along the slopes of the
sierra. In this descent, a passage was sometimes to
be opened through rocks, -      and this without the aid
of iron tools; impracticable mountains were to be
turned; rivers and marshes to be crossed; in short,
the same obstacles were to be encountered as in the
construction of their mighty roads. But the Peruvians seemed to take pleasure in wrestling with the
difficulties of nature. Near Caxamarca, a tunnel is
still visible, which they excavated in the mountains,
to give an outlet to the waters of a lake, when these
rose to a height in the rainy seasons that threatened
the country with inundation.19
Most of these beneficent works of the Incas were
buffered to go to decay by their Spanish conquerors.
In some spots, the waters are still left to flow in their
silent, subterraneous channels, whose windings and
19 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., lugares altos y baxos: y por lade3ap. 21.- Garcilasso, Corn. Real., ras de los cabecos y haldas de?arte 1, lib. 5, cap. 24. — Ste- sierras q estan en los valles: y por
venson, Narrative of a Twenty ellos mismos atrauiessan muchas:
Years' Residence in S. America, unas por una parte, y otras por
(London, 1829,) vol. I. p. 412; otra, que es gran delectaci6 caminar
T. pp. 173, 174.              por aquellos valles: porque parece' Sacauan acequias en cabos y que se anda entre huertas y florepor partes que es cosa estrana stas llenas de frescuras."  Cieza
afirmar lo: porque las echauan por de Leon, Cronica, cap. 66.




CH. IV.]          AQUEDUCTS.              133
whose sources have been alike unexplored. Others,
though partially dilapidated, and closed up with rubbish and the rank vegetation of the soil, still betray
their course by occasional patches of fertility. Such
are the remains in the valley of Nasca, a fruitful
spot that lies between long tracts of desert; where
the ancient water-courses of the Incas, measuring
four or five feet in depth by three in width, and
formed of large blocks of uncemented masonry, are
conducted from an unknown distance.
The greatest care was taken that every occupant
of the land through which these streams passed
should enjoy the benefit of them. The quantity of
water allotted to each was prescribed by law; and
royal overseers superintended the distribution, and
saw that it was faithfully applied to the irrigation of
the ground.20
The Peruvians showed a similar spirit of enterprise in their schemes for introducing cultivation into
the mountainous parts of their domain. Many of
the hills, though covered with a strong soil, were too
precipitous to be tilled. These they cut into terraces, faced with rough stone, diminishing in regular
gradation towards the summit; so that, while the
lower strip, or anden, as it was called by the Spaniards, that belted round the base of the mountain,
might comprehend hundreds of acres, the uppermost
was only large enough to accommodate a few rows
20 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS. -Memoirs of Gen
Miller, vol. II. p. 220.




134          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.         [BooR 1.
of Indian corn.2' Some of the eminences presented
such a mass of solid rock, that, after being hewn
into terraces, they were obliged to be covered deep
with earth, before they could serve the purpose of
the husbandman. With such patient toil did the
Peruvians combat the formidable obstacles presented
by the face of their country!    Without the use of
the tools or the machinery familiar to the European,
each individual could have done little; but acting
in large masses, and under a common direction,
they were enabled by indefatigable perseverance to
achieve results, to have attempted which might have
filled even the European with dismay.22
In the same spirit of economical husbandry which
redeemed the rocky sierra from the curse of sterility,
they dug below the arid soil of the valleys, and
sought for a stratum where some natural moisture
might be found. These excavations, called by the
Spaniards hoyas, or " pits," were made on a great
scale, comprehending frequently more than an acre,
sunk to the depth of fifteen or twenty feet, and
fenced round within by a wall of adobes, or bricks
baked in the sun. The bottom of the excavation,
21 Miller supposes that it was 1, lib. 2, cap. 11.) Anta, the
from these andenes that the Span- word for copper, which was found
iards gave the name of Andes to abundant in certain quarters of the
the South American Cordilleras. country, may have suggested the
(Memoirs of Gen. Miller, vol. II. name of the province, if not immep. 219.) But the name is older diately that of the mountains.
than the Conquest, according to  22 Memoirs of Gen. Miller, ubi
Garcilasso, who traces it to Anti, supra. - Garcilasso, Com. Real.
the name of a province that lay Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 1.
east of Cuzco. (Com. Real., Parte




CH. IV.]            GUANO.                 135
well prepared by a rich manure of the sardines,a small fish obtained in vast quantities along the
coast,- was planted with some kind of grain or
vegetable.23
The Peruvian farmers were well acquainted with
the different kinds of manures, and made large use
of them; a circumstance rare in the rich lands of
the tropics, and probably not elsewhere practised by
the rude tribes of America. They made great use
of guano, the valuable deposit of sea-fowl, that has
attracted so much attention, of late, from the agriculturists both of Europe and of our own country,
and the stimulating and nutritious properties of
which the Indians perfectly appreciated. This was
found in such immense quantities on many of the
little islands along the coast, as to have the appearance of lofty hills, which, covered with a white saline incrustation, led the Conquerors to give them
the name of the sierra nevada, or " snowy mountains."
The Incas took their usual precautions for securing the benefits of this important article to the husbandman. They assigned the small islands on the
coast to the use of the respective districts which lay
adjacent to them. When the island was large, it
was distributed among several districts, and the boundaries for each were clearly defined. All encroach23 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. of the modern traveller. See Ste73.                     venson, Residence in S. America,
The remains of these ancient vol. I. p. 359.- Also McCulloh,
excavations still excite the wonder Researches, p. 358.




136       CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BooK I.
ment on the rights of another was severely punished.
And they secured the preservation of the fowl by
penalties as stern as those by which the Norman
tyrants of England protected their own game. No
one was allowed to set foot on the island during the
season for breeding, under pain of death; and to
kill the birds at any time was punished in the like
manner.24
With this advancement in agricultural science, the
Peruvians might be supposed to have had some
knowledge of the plough, in such general use among
the primitive nations of the eastern continent. But
they had neither the iron ploughshare of the Old
World, nor had they animals for draught, which,
indeed, were nowhere found in the New.    The
instrument which they used was a strong, sharppointed stake, traversed by a horizontal piece, ten
or twelve inches from the point, on which the
ploughman might set his foot and force it into the
ground. Six or eight strong men were attached by
ropes to the stake, and dragged it forcibly along, -
pulling together, and keeping time as they moved
by chanting their national songs, in which they were
accompanied by the women who followed in their
train, to break up the sods with their rakes. The
mellow soil offered slight resistance; and the laborer,
by long practice, acquired a dexterity which enabled
him to turn up the ground to the requisite depth
24 Acosta, lib. 4, cap. 36.-  Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 1,
lib. 5, cap. 3.




CH. IV.]         AGRICULTURE.              137
with astonishing facility.  This substitute for the
plough was but a clumsy contrivance; yet it is curious as the only specimen of the kind among the
American aborigines, and was perhaps not much
inferior to the wooden instrument introduced in its
stead by the European conquerors.25
It was frequently the policy of the Incas, after providing a deserted tract with the means for irrigation,
and thus fitting it for the labors of the husbandman,
to transplant there a colony of mitimaes, who brought
it under cultivation by raising the crops best suited
to the soil. While the peculiar character and capacity of the lands were thus consulted, a means
of exchange of the different products was afforded to
the neighbouring provinces, which, from the formation
of the country, varied much more than usual within
the same limits. To facilitate these agricultural exchanges, fairs were instituted, which took place three
times a month in some of the most populous places,
where, as money was unknown, a rude kind of
commerce was kept up by the barter of their respective products. These fairs afforded so many holidays for the relaxation of the industrious laborer.26
Such were the expedients adopted by the Incas
for the improvement of their territory; and, although
imperfect, they must be allowed to show an acquaintance with the principles of agricultural science,
that gives them some claim to the rank of a civilized
25 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 2.  Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 36; lib. 7,
26 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 1. —Herrera, Hist. General,
cap. 19. -Garcilasso, Com. Real., dec. 5, lib. 4, cap. 3.
VOL. I.        18




138        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [Bool I.
people. Under their patient and discriminating culture, every inch of good soil was tasked to its greatest power of production; while the most unpromising spots were compelled to contribute something
to the subsistence of the people. Everywhere the
land teemed with evidence of agricultural wealth,
from the smiling valleys along the coast to the terraced steeps of the sierra, which, rising into pyramids of verdure, glowed with all the splendors of
tropical vegetation.
The formation of the country was particularly favorable, as already remarked, to an infinite variety of
products, not so much from its extent as from its
various elevations, which, more remarkable, even,
than those in Mexico, comprehend every degree
of latitude from the equator to the polar regions.
Yet, though the temperature changes in this region
with the degree of elevation, it remains nearly the
same in the same spots throughout the year; and the
inhabitant feels none of those grateful vicissitudes of
season which belong to the temperate latitudes of
the globe. Thus, while the summer lies in full power
on the burning regions of the palm and the cocoatree that fringe the borders of the ocean, the broad
surface of the table-land blooms with the freshness
of perpetual spring, and the higher summits of the
Cordilleras are white with everlasting winter.
The Peruvians turned this fixed variety of climate,
if I may so say, to the best account by cultivating
the productions appropriate to each; and they particularly directed their attention to those which af




CH. IV.]         IMPORTANT ESCULENTS.                     139
forded the    most nutriment to man.          Thus, in the
lower level were to be found         the cassava-tree and
the banana, that bountiful plant, which seems to
have relieved man from the primeval curse - if it
were not rather a blessing - of toiling for his sustenance.27    As the banana faded from         the landscape,
a good substitute was found in the maize, the great
agricultural staple of both the northern and southern
divisions of the American continent; and which,
after its exportation to the Old World, spread so
rapidly there, as to suggest the idea of its being indigenous to it.28 The Peruvians were well acquainted with the different modes of preparing this useful
vegetable, though it seems they did not use it for
bread, except at festivals; and they extracted a
sort of honey from the stalk, and made an intoxicating liquor from the fermented grain, to which, like
the Aztecs, they were immoderately addicted.29
27 The prolific properties of the covery of America, is of itself suffibanana are shown by M. de Hum- cient to show that it could not have
boldt, who states that its produc- been indigenous to the Old World,
tiveness, as compared with that of and have so long remained generwheat, is as 133 to 1, and with that ally unknown there.
of the potato, as 44 to 1. (Essai  29 Acosta, lib. 4, cap. 16.
Politique sur le Royaume de la Nou-  The saccharine matter contained
velle Espagne, Paris, 1827, tom. in the maize-stalk is much greater
II. p. 389.) It is a mistake to in tropical countries than in more
suppose that this plant was not in- northern latitudes; so that the
digenous to South America. The natives in the former may be seen
banana-leaf has been frequently sometimes sucking it like the sugarfound in ancient Peruvian tombs.  cane. One kind of the fermented
28 The misnomer of blU de Tur- liquors, sora, made from the corn,
quie shows the popular error. Yet was of such strength, that the use
the rapidity of its diffusion through  of it was forbidden by the Incas,
Europe and Asia, after the dis- at least to the common people.




140          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK 1.
The temperate climate of the table-land furnished
them with the maguey, agave Americana, many of
the extraordinary qualities of which they comprehended, though not its most important one of affording a material for paper. Tobacco, too, was among
the products of this elevated region. Yet the Peruvians differed from  every other Indian nation to
whom   it was known, by using it only for medicinal
purposes, in the form of snuff.30 They may have
found a substitute for its narcotic qualities in the
coca (Erythroxylum Peruvianum), or cuca, as called
by the natives. This is a shrub which grows to the
height of a man. The leaves when gathered are
dried in the sun, and, being mixed with a little lime,
form a preparation for chewing, much like the betelleaf of the East.31  With a small supply of this cuca
in his pouch, and a handful of roasted maize, the
Peruvian Indian of our time performs his wearisome
journeys, day after day, without fatigue, or, at least,
without complaint. Even food the most invigorating is less grateful to him than his loved narcotic.
Under the Incas, it is said to have been exclusively
reserved for the noble orders. If so, the people
gained one luxury by the Conquest; and, after that
period, it was so extensively used by them, that
this article constituted a most important item of the
Their injunctions do not seem to was in like manner mixed with
have been obeyed so implicitly in lime when chewed. (Elphinstone,
this instance as usual.     History of India, London, 1841,
30 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte vol. I. p. 331.) The similarity
1, lib. 2, cap. 25.         of this social indulgence, in the
31 The pungent leaf of the betel remote East and West, is singular.




CH. IV.]         IMPORTANT ESCULENTS.                    141
colonial revenue of Spain.32 Yet, with the soothing
charms of an opiate, this weed so much vaunted by
the natives, when used to excess, is said to be attended with all the mischievous effects of habitual
intoxication.33
Higher up on the slopes of the Cordilleras, beyond the limits of the maize and of the quinoa, -
a grain bearing some resemblance to rice, and largely
cultivated by the Indians, - was to be found the potato, the introduction of which into Europe has
made an era in the history of agriculture.         Whether
indigenous to Peru, or imported from the neighbouring country of Chili, it formed the great staple of
the more elevated plains, under the Incas, and its
culture was continued to a height in the equatorial
regions which reached many thousand feet above
the limits of perpetual snow in the temperate latitudes of Europe.34 Wild specimens of the vegeta32 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.-   The potato, found by the early
Acosta, lib. 4, cap. 22.- Steven- discoverers in Chili, Peru, New
son, Residence in S. America, vol. Granada, and all along the CorII. p. 63. -Cieza de Leon, Cro- dilleras of South America, was unnica, cap. 96.                 known in Mexico,- an additional
33 A traveller (Poeppig) noticed proof of the entire ignorance in
in the Foreign Quarterly Review, which the respective nations of the
(No. 33,) expatiates on the malig- two continents remained of one
nant effects of the habitual use of another. M. de Humboldt, who
the cuca, as very similar to those has bestowed much attention on
produced on the chewer of opium. the early history of this vegetable,
Strange that such baneful proper- which has exerted so important an
ties should not be the subject of influence on European society, sup
more frequent comment with other poses that the cultivation of it in
writers! I do not remember to Virginia, where it was known to
have seen them even adverted to  the early planters, must have been
34 Malte-Brun, book 86.       originally derived from the South



142            CIVILIZATION     OF THE INCAS.           [BooK I.
ble might be seen still higher, springing up spontaneously amidst the stunted shrubs that clothed the
lofty sides of the Cordilleras, till these gradually
subsided into the mosses and the short yellow grass,
pajonal, which, like a golden carpet, was unrolled
around the base of the mighty cones, that rose far
into the regions of eternal silence, covered with the
snows of centuries.35
ern Spanish colonies. Essai Poli- there. The first wheat was intiotique, tom. II. p. 462.          duced by a Spanish lady of Tru35 While Peru, under the Incas, jillo, who took great pains to discould boast these indigenous prod- seminate it among the colonists,
ucts, and many others less familiar of which the government, to its
to the European, it was unacquaint- credit, was not unmindful. Her
ed with several of great importance, name was Maria de Escobar. Hiswhich, since the Conquest, have  tory, which is so much occupied
thriven there as on their natural with celebrating the scourges of
soil. Such are the olive, the grape, humanity, should take pleasure in
the fig, the apple, the orange, the  commemorating one of its real
sugar-cane. None of the cereal benefactors.
grains of the Old World were found




CHAPTER I
PERUVIAN SHEEP. -GREAT HUNTS. - MANUFACTURES. - MECHANICAL SKILL. - ARCHITECTURE. - CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.
A NATION which had made such progress in agriculture might be reasonably expected to have made,
also, some proficiency in the mechanical arts, —
especially when, as in the case of the Peruvians,
their agricultural economy demanded in itself no inconsiderable degree of mechanical skill. Among
most nations, progress in manufactures has been
found to have an intimate connection with the
progress of husbandry. Both arts are directed to
the same great object of supplying the necessaries,
the comforts, or, in a more refined condition of society, the luxuries of life; and when the one is
brought to a perfection that infers a certain advance
in civilization, the other must naturally find a corresponding development under the increasing demands and capacities of such a state. The subjects
of the Incas, in their patient and tranquil devotion
to the more humble occupations of industry which
bound them to their native soil, bore greater resemblance to the Oriental nations, as the Hindoos and
Chinese, than they bore to the members of the




144        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.    [BOOK I.
great Anglo-Saxon family, whose hardy temper has
driven them  to seek their fortunes on the stormy
ocean, and to open a commerce with the most distant regions of the globe.' The Peruvians, though
lining a long extent of sea-coast, had no foreign
commerce.
They had peculiar advantages for domestic manufacture in a material incomparably superior to any
thing possessed by the other races of the Western
continent. They found a good substitute for linen in
a fabric which, like the Aztecs, they knew how to
weave from the tough thread of the maguey. Cotton grew luxuriantly on the low, sultry level of the
coast, and furnished them with a clothing suitable
to the milder latitudes of the country. But from
the llama and the kindred species of Peruvian sheep
they obtained a fleece adapted to the colder climate
of the table-land, "more estimable," to quote the
language of a well-informed writer, " than the down
of the Canadian beaver, the fleece of the brebis des
Calmoucks, or of the Syrian goat." 
Of the four varieties of the Peruvian sheep, the
llama, the one most familiarly known, is the least
valuable on account of its wool. It is chiefly employed as a beast of burden, for which, although it
is somewhat larger than any of the other varieties, its
diminutive size and strength would seem to disquali1 Walton, Historical and De- ed to the wool of the vicufia, the
scriptive Account of the Peruvian most esteemed of the genus for its
Sheep, (London, 1811,) p. 115. fleece.
This writer's comparison is direct



CH. V.]         PERUVIAN SHEEP.              145
fy it.  It carries a load of little more than a hundred pounds, and cannot travel above three or four
leagues in a day. But all this is compensated by
the little care and cost required for its management
and its maintenance. It picks up an easy subsistence from the moss and stunted herbage that grow
scantily along the withered sides and the steeps
of the Cordilleras.  The structure of its stomach,
like that of the camel, is such as to enable it to dispense with any supply of water for weeks, nay,
months together.  Its spongy hoof, armed with a
claw or pointed talon to enable it to take secure
hold on the ice, never requires to be shod; and the
load laid upon its back rests securely in its bed
of wool, without the aid of girth or saddle. The
llamas move in troops of five hundred or even a
thousand, and thus, though each individual carries
but little, the aggregate is considerable. The whole
caravan travels on at its regular pace, passing the
night in the open air without suffering from the
coldest temperature, and marching in perfect order,
and in obedience to the voice of the driver. It is
only when overloaded that the spirited little animal
refuses to stir, and neither blows nor caresses can
induce him to rise from the ground. He is as sturdy
in asserting his rights on this occasion, as he is usually docile and unresisting.2
2 Ibid., p. 23, et seq. -Garci- de la Vega, is a Peruvian word
lasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. 8, signifying " flock." (Ibid., ubi
cap. 16.- Acosta, lib. 4, cap. 41. supra.) The natives got no milk
Llama, according to Garcilasso from their domesticated animals,
VOL. I.         19




146          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.         [ Boo I.
The employment of domestic animals distinguished the Peruvians from the other races of the New
World.    This economy of human         labor   by  the
substitution of the brute is an important element
of civilization, inferior only to what is gained by
the substitution of machinery for both. Yet the
ancient Peruvians seem     to have made much less
account of it than their Spanish conquerors, and to
have valued the llama, in common with the other animals of that genus, chiefly for its fleece.  Immense
herds of these 4' large cattle," as they were called,
and of the "smaller cattle,"3 or alpacas, were held
by the government, as already noticed, and placed
under the direction of shepherds, who conducted
them from one quarter of the country to another,
according to the changes of the season. These migrations were regulated with all the precision with
which the code of the mesta determined the migrations of the vast merino flocks in Spain; and the
Conquerors, when they landed in Peru, were amazed
at finding a race of animals so similar to their own
in properties and habits, and under the control of
a system of legislation which might seem to have
been imported from their native land.4
nor was milk used, I believe, by culiarly suited to the exigencies of
any tribe on the American conti- the natives. " En esto de los ganent.                        nados paresci6 haber hecho muchas
3 Ganado maior, ganado menor. constituciones en diferentes tiempes
4 The judicious Ondegardo em- 6 algunas tan utiles 6 provechosas
phatically recommends the adop- para su conservacion que convention of many of these regulations dria quo tambien guardasen agora."
by the Spanish government, as pc- Rel. Seg., MS.




CH. V.]          GREAT HUNTS.              147
But the richest store of wool was obtained, not
from these domesticated animals, but from the two
other species, the huanacos and the vicunas, which
roamed in native freedom over the frozen ranges of
the Cordilleras; where not unfrequently they might
be seen scaling the snow-covered peaks which no
living thing inhabits save the condor, the huge bird
of the Andes, whose broad pinions bear him up in
the atmosphere to the height of more than twenty
thousand feet above the level of the sea.5 In these
rugged pastures, " the flock without a fold" finds
sufficient sustenance in the ychu, a species of grass
which is found scattered all along the great ridge of
the Cordilleras, from the equator to the southern limits of Patagonia. And as these limits define the territory traversed by the Peruvian sheep, which rarely,
if ever, venture north of the line, it seems not improbable that this mysterious little plant is so important to their existence, that the absence of it is the
principal reason why they have not penetrated to the
northern latitudes of Quito and New Granada.6
But, although thus roaming without a master over
the boundless wastes of the Cordilleras, the Peruvian peasant was never allowed to hunt these wild
animals, which were protected by laws as severe as
were the sleek herds that grazed on the more cultivated slopes of the plateau. The wild game of the
forest and the mountain was as much the property
5 Malte-Brun, book 86.  ruana Jarava; Class, Monandria
6 Ychu, called in the Flora Pe- Digynia. See Walton, p. 17




148         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.     rBoor I.
of the government, as if it had been inclozed within
a park, or penned within a fold.7  It was only on
stated occasions, at the great hunts, which took
place once a year, under the personal superintendence of the Inca or his principal officers, that the
game was allowed to be taken. These hunts were
not repeated in the same quarter of the country
oftener than once in four years, that time might be
allowed for the waste occasioned by them to be replenished. At the appointed time, all those living
in the district and its neighbourhood, to the number,
it might be, of fifty or sixty thousand men,8 were
distributed round, so as to form a cordon of immense
extent, that should embrace the whole country which
was to be hunted over. The men were armed with
long poles and spears, with which they beat up game
of every description lurking in the woods, the valleys, and the mountains, killing the beasts of prey
without mercy, and driving the others, consisting
chiefly of the deer of the country, and the huanacos
and vicunas, towards the centre of the wide-extended circle; until, as this gradually contracted, the
timid inhabitants of the forest were concentrated on
some spacious plain, where the eye of the hunter
might range freely over his victims, who found no
place for shelter or escape.
The male deer and some of the coarser kind of
7 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.  Sarmiento. " De donde havien8 Sometimes even a hundred dose ya juntado cinquenta 6 sesenta
thousand mustered, when the Inca mil Personas 6 cien mil si mandado
hunted in person, if we may credit les era." Relacion, MS., cap. 13




CII. V.]         MANUFACTURES.                149
the Peruvian sheep were slaughtered; their skins
were reserved for the various useful manufactures
to which they are ordinarily applied, and their flesh,
cut into thin slices, was distributed  among  the
people, who converted it into charqui, the dried meat
of the country, which constituted then the sole,
as it has since the principal, animal food of the
lower classes of Peru.9
But nearly the whole of the sheep, amounting usually to thirty or forty thousand, or even a
larger number, after being carefully sheared, were
suffered to escape and regain their solitary haunts
among the mountains. The wool thus collected was
deposited in the royal magazines, whence, in due
time, it was dealt out to the people. The coarser
quality was worked up into garments for their own
use, and the finer for the Inca; for none but an
Inca noble could wear the fine fabric of the vicuna.10
The Peruvians showed great skill in the manufacture of different articles for the royal household from
this delicate material, which, under the name of vigonia wool, is now familiar to the looms of Europe.
It was wrought into shawls, robes, and other articles of dress for the monarch, and into carpets, coverlets, and hangings for the imperial palaces and the
temples. The cloth was finished on both sides
alike;  the delicacy of the texture was such as to
9 Ibid., ubi supra.      10 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
Charqui; hence, probably, says loc. cit. - Cieza de Leon, Cronica,
McCulloh, the term" jerked," ap- cap. 81.- Garcilasso, Corn. Real.,
plied to the dried beef of South Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 6.
America. Researches, p. 377.  11 Acosta, lib. 4, cap. 41.




150           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.            [Booir I
give it the lustre of silk; and the brilliancy of the
dyes excited the admiration and the envy of the
European artisan.2 The Peruvians produced also
an article of great strength and durability by mixing
the hair of animals with wool; and they were expert in the beautiful feather-work, which they held
of less account than the Mexicans from         the superior
quality of the materials for other fabrics, which they
had at their command.13
The natives showed a skill in other mechanical
arts similar to that displayed by their manufactures
of cloth. Every man in Peru was expected to be
acquainted with the various handicrafts essential to
domestic comfort. No long apprenticeship was
required for this, where the wants were so few as
among the simple peasantry of the Incas. But, if
this were all, it would imply but a very moderate
advancement in the arts. There were certain individuals, however, carefully trained to those occupations which minister to the demands of the more
opulent classes of society. These occupations, like
12 "Ropas finisimas para los gano este reyno. Los vestidos
Reyes, que lo eran tanto que pare- destos Ingas eran camisetas desta
cian de sarga de seda y con colores ropa: vnas pobladas de argenteria
tan perfectos quanto se puede afir- de oro, otras de esmeraldas y piemar."  Sarmiento, Relacion,MS., dras preciosas: y algunas de p]ucap. 13.                       mas de aues: otras de solamente
13 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y  la manta. Para hazer estas ropas,
Conq., MS.                     tuuiero y tienen tan perfetas colorea
"Ropa finissima para los sefiores de carmesi, azul, amarillo, negro,
Ingas de lana de las Vicunias. Y  y de otras suertes: que verdaderacierto fue tan prima esta ropa, mente tienen ventaja a las de
como auran visto en Espana: por Espana."  Cieza de Leon, Croalguna que alla fue luego que se nica, cap. 114.




CH. V.]           MECHANICAL SKILL.                  151
every other calling and office in Peru, always descended from father to son.'4 The division of castes,
in this particular, was as precise as that which existed in Egypt or Hindostan. If this arrangement
be unfavorable to originality, or to the development
of the peculiar talent of the individual, it at least
conduces to an easy and finished execution by familiarizing the artist with the practice of his art from
childhood.l5
The royal magazines and the huacas or tombs of
the Incas have been found to contain many specimens of curious and elaborate workmanship. Among
these are vases of gold and silver, bracelets, collars,
and other ornaments for the person; utensils of
every description, some of fine clay, and many more
of copper; mirrors of a hard, polished stone, or
burnished silver, with a great variety of other articles made frequently on a whimsical pattern, evincing quite as much ingenuity as taste or inventive
talent.l6 The character of the Peruvian mind led
14 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et Hist. de l'Acad. Royale de Berlin,
Seg., MSS. - Garcilasso, Cor. tom. II. p. 454-456.
Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 7, 9,  The last writer says, that a large
13.                           collection of massive gold orna15 At least, such was the opinion ments of very rich workmanship
of the Egyptians, who referred to was long preserved in the royal
this arrangement of castes as the treasury of Quito.  But on his
source of their own peculiar dex- going there to examine them, he
terity in the arts. See Diodorus learned that they had just been
Sic., lib. 1, sec. 74.        melted down into ingots to send to
16 Ulloa, Not. Amer., ent. 21.-  Carthagena, then besieged by the
Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., English! The art of war can flourMS. - Cieza de Leon, Cronica, ish only at the expense of all the
cap. 114.- Condamine, Mem. ap. other arts.




152          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BooK I.
to imitation, in fact, rather than invention, to delicacy and minuteness of finish, rather than to boldness or beauty of design.
That they should have accomplished these difficult
works with such tools as they possessed, is truly
wonderful. It was comparatively easy to cast and
even to sculpture metallic substances, both of which
they   did  with  consummate      skill.  But that they
should have shown the like facility in cutting the
hardest substances, as emeralds and other precious
stones, is not so easy to explain. Emeralds they
obtained   in considerable   quantity from    the barren
district of Atacames, and       this inflexible  material
seems to have been almost as ductile in the hands
of the Peruvian     artist as if it had been made of
clay.17  Yet the natives were unacquainted with the
use of iron, though the soil was largely impregnated
with   it.'8  The tools used were of stone, or more
frequently of copper.    But ther material on which they
relied for the execution of their most difficult tasks
was formed by combining a very small portion of
tin with copper.19   This composition gave a hardness
to the metal which seems to have been little inferior
17 They had turquoises, also, Seg., MS.- Herrera, Hist. Genand might have had pearls, but for eral, dec. 5, lib. 4, cap. 4.
the tenderness of the Incas, who  19 M. de Humboldt brought with
were unwilling to risk the lives of him back to Europe one of these
their people in this perilous fishery! metallic tools, a chisel, found in a
At least, so we are assured by silver mine opened by the Incas
Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, not far from Cuzco. On an analylib. 8, cap. 23.              sis, it was found to contain 0-94
18 c" No tenian herramientas de of copper, and 0'06 of tin. Sea
hierro ni azero." Ondegardo, Rel. Vues des Cordilleres, p. 117.




CH. V.]         MECHANICAL SKILL.            153
to that of steel.  With the aid of it, not only did
the Peruvian artisan hew into shape porphyry and
granite, but by his patient industry accomplished
works which the European would not have ventured
to undertake.  Among the remains of the monuments of Cannar may be seen movable rings in the
muzzles of animals, all nicely sculptured of one entire block of granite.20  It is worthy of remark, that
the Egyptians, the Mexicans, and the Peruvians, in
their progress towards civilization, should never have
detected the use of iron, which lay around them in
abundance; and that they should each, without any
knowledge of the other, have found a substitute
for it in such a curious composition of metals as
gave to their tools almost the temper of steel;21 a
secret that has been lost — or, to speak more correctly, has never been discovered - by the civilized
European.
I have already spoken of the large quantity of
gold and silver wrought into various articles of elegance and utility for the Incas; though the amount
was inconsiderable, in comparison with what could
have been afforded by the mineral riches of the
land, and with what has since been obtained by the
more sagacious and unscrupulous cupidity of the
white man. Gold was gathered by the Incas from
20 " Quoiqu'il en soit," says M. neaux mobiles de la mgme pierre."
de la Condamine, " nous avons vu Mem. ap. Hist. de l'Acad. Royale
en quelques autres ruines des orne- de Berlin, tom. II. p. 452.
mens du meme granit, qui repr6sen-  21 See the History of the Contoient des mufles d'anirnaux, dont quest of Mexico, Book 1, chap. 5
les narines percees portoient des anVOL 1.          20




154         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.       [BOOK I.
the deposits of the streams.    They extracted the
ore also in considerable quantities from the valley of
Curimayo, northeast of Caxamarca, as well as from
other places; and the silver mines of Porco, in particular, yielded them considerable returns. Yet they
did not attempt to penetrate into the bowels of the
earth by sinking a shaft, but simply excavated a
cavern in the steep sides of the mountain, or, at
most, opened a horizontal vein of moderate depth.
They were equally deficient in the knowledge of the
best means of detaching the precious metal from the
dross with which it was united, and had no idea
of the virtues of quicksilver, -a mineral not rare in
Peru, - as an amalgam to effect this decomposition.22 Their method of smelting the ore was by
means of furnaces built in elevated and exposed
situations, where they might be fanned by the strong
breezes of the mountains.      The subjects of the
Incas, in short, with all their patient perseverance,
did little more than penetrate below the crust, the
outer rind, as it were, formed over those golden caverns which lie hidden in the dark depths of the Andes. Yet what they gleaned from the surface was
more than adequate for all their demands. For they
were not a commercial people, and had no knowledge
of money.23   In this they differed from  the ancient
22 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte so incredible of the little island of
1, lib. 8, cap. 25.        Loo Choo, was still more extraor23 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 7; dinary in a great and flourishing
lib. 6, cap. 8. —Ondegardo, Rel. empire like Peru; -the country,
Seg., MS.                 too, which contained within it
This, which Bonaparte thought bowels the treasures that were c




CH. V.]         ARCHITECTURE.             155
Mexicans, who had an established currency of a
determinate value. In one respect, however, they
were superior to their American rivals, since they
made use of weights to determine the quantity of
their commodities, a thing wholly unknown to the
Aztecs. This fact is ascertained by the discovery
of silver balances, adjusted with perfect accuracy, in
some of the tombs of the Incas.24
But the surest test of the civilization of a people
- at least, as sure as any - afforded by mechanical
art is to be found in their architecture, which presents so noble a field for the display of the grand
and the beautiful, and which, at the same time, is so
intimately connected with the essential comforts of
life. There is no object on which the resources of
the wealthy are more freely lavished, or which calls
out more effectually the inventive talent of the
artist. The painter and the sculptor may display
their individual genius in creations of surpassing
excellence, but it is the great monuments of architectural taste and magnificence that are stamped in
a peculiar manner by the genius of the nation.
The Greek, the Egyptian, the Saracen, the Gothic,
-what a key do their respective styles afford to the
character and condition of the people! The monuments of China, of Hindostan, and of Central America are all indicative of an immature period, in
which the imagination has not been disciplined by
study, and which, therefore, in its best results, beday to furnish Europe with the  24 Ulloa, Not. Amer., ent. 21.
basis of its vast metallic currency.




156           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [Boox I
trays only the ill-regulated aspirations after the
beautiful, that belong to a semi-civilized people.
The Peruvian architecture, bearing also the general characteristics of an imperfect state of refinement, had still its peculiar character; and so uniform was that character, that the edifices throughout
the country seem to have been all cast in the same
mould.25 They were usually built of porphyry or
granite; not unfrequently of brick. This, which
was formed into blocks or squares of much larger
dimensions than our brick, was made of a tenacious
earth mixed up with reeds or tough grass, and acquired a degree of hardness with age that made it
insensible alike to the storms and the more trying sun
of the tropics.26 The walls were of great thickness,
but low, seldom reaching to more than twelve or
fourteen feet in height.     It is rare to meet with accounts of a building that rose to a second story.27
The apartments had no communication with one
another, but usually opened into a court; and, as
they were unprovided with windows, or apertures
that served for them, the only light from without
25 It is the observation of Hum- seul architecte a construit ce grand
boldt. "I1 est impossible d'ex- nombre de monumens."  Vues des
aminer attentivement un seul edifice  Cordilleres, p. 197.
du temps des Incas, sans recon-  26 Ulloa, who carefully exam
noitre le m.me type dans tous les ined these bricks, suggests that
autres qui couvrent le dos des there must have been some secrel
Andes, sur une longueur de plus in their composition, - so superior
de quatre cent cinquante lieues, in many respects to our own manu
depuis mille jusqu'a quatre mille facture,- now lost. Not. Amer..
metres d'elevation au-dessus du ent. 20.
niveau de l'Ocean. On dirait qu'un  27 Ibid., ubi supra.




CH. V.]             ARCHITECTURE                   157
must have been admitted by the doorways. These
were made with the sides approaching each other
towards the top, so that the lintel was considerably
narrower than the threshold, a peculiarity, also, in
Egyptian architecture.    The roofs have for the most
part disappeared with time. Some few survive in
the less ambitious edifices, of a singular bell-shape,
and made of a composition of earth and pebbles.
They are supposed, however, to have been generally
formed of more perishable materials, of wood or
straw.   It is certain that some of the most considerable stone-buildings were thatched      with  straw.
Many seem     to have been constructed without the
aid of cement; and writers have contended that the
Peruvians were unacquainted with the use of mortar, or cement of any kind.2?      But a close, tenacious mould, mixed with lime, may be discovered
filling up the interstices of the granite in some
buildings; and in others, where the well-fitted blocks
leave no room for this coarser material, the eye of
the antiquary has detected a fine bituminous glue,
as hard as the rock itself.29
28 Among others, see Acosta, Cordillgres, p. 116.) Father Velib. 6, cap. 15. -Robertson, His- lasco is in raptures with an " altory of America, (London, 1796,) most imperceptible kind of cement"
vol. III. p. 213.           made of lime and a bituminous
29 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS. substance resembling glue, which
-Ulloa, Not. Amer., ent. 21.  incorporated with the stones so as
Humboldt, who analyzed the to hold them firmly together like
cement of the ancient structures at one solid mass, yet left nothing
Cannar, says that it is a true mor- visible to the eye of the common
tar, formed of a mixture of pebbles observer. This glutinous compoand a clayey marl. (Vues des sition, mixed with pebbles, made a




158          CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.          [BOOK I.
The greatest simplicity is observed in the construction of the buildings, which are usually free
from outward ornament; though in some the huge
stones are shaped into a convex form with great
regularity, and adjusted with such nice precision to
one another, that it would be impossible, but for
the flutings, to determine the line of junction.      In
others, the stone is rough, as it was taken from
the quarry, in the most irregular forms, with        the
edges nicely wrought and fitted to each other.
There is no appearance of columns or of arches;
though there is some contradiction as to the latter
point. But it is not to be doubted, that, although
they may have made some approach to this mode of
construction by the greater or less inclination of the
walls, the Peruvian architects were wholly unacquainted with the true principle of the circular arch
reposing on its key-stone.30
The architecture of the Incas is characterized,
says an eminent traveller, " by simplicity, symmetry,
and solidity." 31   It may seem     unphilosophical to
condemn the peculiar fashion of a nation as indicating want of taste, because its standard of taste
differs from our own. Yet there is an incongruity
sort of Macadamized road much Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 14. - Ulloa,
used by the Incas, as hard and Voyage to S. America, vol. I. p
almost as smooth as marble. Hist. 469. — Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
de Quito, tom. I. pp. 126- 128.  31 " Simplicit6, symetrie, et so30 Condamine, Mem. ap. Hist. lidite, voila les trois caractdres par
de l'Acad. Royale de Berlin, ton. Icsquels se distinguent avantageuseII. p. 448. - Antig. y Monumentos ment tous les 6difices p6ruviens."
del Peru, MS.-Herrera, Hist. Humboldt, Vues des Cordilleres,
General, dec. 5, lib 4, cap. 4.-  p. 115.




CH. V.]          ARCHITECTURE.              159
in the composition of the Peruvian buildings which
argues a very imperfect acquaintance with the first
principles of architecture. While they put together
their bulky masses of porphyry and granite with the
nicest art, they were incapable of mortising their
timbers, and, in their ignorance of iron, knew no
better way of holding the beams together than
tying them with thongs of maguey. In the same
incongruous spirit, the building that was thatched
with straw, and unilluminated by a window, was
glowing with tapestries of gold and silver! These
are the inconsistencies of a rude people, among
whom the arts are but partially developed.  It might
not be difficult to find examples of like inconsistency in the architecture and domestic arrangements of our Anglo-Saxon, and, at a still later period,
of our Norman ancestors.
Yet the buildings of the Incas were accommodated to the character of the climate, and were well
fitted to resist those terrible convulsions which belong to the land of volcanoes. The wisdom of their
plan is attested by the number which still survive,
while the more modern constructions of the Conquerors have been buried in ruins. The hand of the
Conquerors, indeed, has fallen heavily on these venerable monuments, and, in their blind and superstitious
search for hidden treasure, has caused infinitely more
ruin than time or the earthquake.32  Yet enough of
32 The anonymous author of the of those golden traditions which,
Antig. y Monumentos del Peru, in early times, fostered the spirit of
MS., gives us, at second hand, one adventure. The tradition, in this




160            CIVILIZATION     OF THE INCAS.            [Boor I.
these monuments still remain to invite the researches
of the antiquary. Those only in the most conspicuous situations have       been hitherto     examined.       But,
by the testimony of travellers, many more are to
be found in the less frequented parts of the country; and we may hope they will one day call forth
a kindred spirit of enterprise to that which has so
successfully explored the mysterious recesses of Central America and Yucatan.
I cannot close this analysis of the Peruvian institutions without a       few   reflections on     their general
character and tendency, which, if they involve some
instance, he thinks well entitled to  night exclaimed,' Lady! do you
credit. The reader will judge for wish to know whether I am rich or
himself.                          poor? You shall see that no lord
"It is a well-authenticated re- nor king in the world has a larger
port, and generally received, that treasure than I have.' Then covthere is a secret hall in the fortress ering her eyes with a handkerchief,
of Cuzco, where an immense treas- he made her turn round two or
ure is concealed, consisting of the  three times, and, taking her by the
statues of all the Incas, wrought hand, led her a short distance
in gold. A   lady is still living, before he removed the bandage.
Dona Maria de Esquivel, the wife  On opening her eyes, what was
of the last Inca, who has visited  her amazement! She had gone
this hall, and I have heard her not more than two hundred paces,
relate the way in which she was   and descended a short flight of
carried to see it.                steps, and she now found herself in
"Don Carlos, the lady's hus- a large quadrangular hall, where,
band, did not maintain   a style  ranged on benches round the walls,
of living becoming his high rank. she beheld the statues of the Incas,
Doiia Maria sometimes reproach- each of the size of a boy twelve
ed him, declaring that she had    years old, all of massive gold!
been deceived into marrying a poor She saw also many vessels of gold
Indian  under the lofty title of  and silver.  In fact,' she said, it
Lord or Inca. She said this so    was one of the most magnificent
frequently, that Don Carlos one   treasures in the whole world!'"




CH. V.]     CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.       161
repetition of previous remarks, may, I trust, be excused, from my desire to leave a correct and consistent impression on the reader. In this survey, we
cannot but be struck with the total dissimilarity between these institutions and those of the Aztecs, -
the other great nation who led in the march of civilization on this western continent, and whose empire in the northern portion of it was as conspicuous
as that of the Incas in the south.  Both nations
came on the plateau, and commenced their career
of conquest, at dates, it may be, not far removed
from each other.33 And it is worthy of notice, that,
in America, the elevated region along the crests of
the great mountain ranges should have been the
chosen seat of civilization in both hemispheres.
Very different was the policy pursued by the two
races in their military career. The Aztecs, animated
by the most ferocious spirit, carried on a war of extermination, signalizing their triumphs by the sacrifice of hecatombs of captives; while the Incas,
although they pursued the game of conquest with
equal pertinacity, preferred a milder policy, substituting negotiation and intrigue for violence, and
dealt with their antagonists so that their future
resources should not be crippled, and that they
should come as friends, not as foes, into the bosom
of the empire.
Their policy toward the conquered forms a contrast no less striking to that pursued by the Aztecs.
33 Ante, chap. 1.
VOL. I.        21




162        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.  [BOOx I.
The Mexican vassals were ground by excessive
imposts and military conscriptions. No regard was
had to their welfare, and the only limit to oppression
was the power of endurance.   They were overawed by fortresses and armed garrisons, and were
made to feel every hour that they were not part and
parcel of the nation, but held only in subjugation
as a conquered people. The Incas, on the other
hand, admitted their new subjects at once to all the
rights enjoyed by the rest of the community; and,
though they made them conform to the established
laws and usages of the empire, they watched over
their personal security and comfort with a sort of
parental solicitude. The motley population, thus
bound together by common interest, was animated
by a common feeling of loyalty, which gave greater strength and stability to the empire, as it became more and more widely extended; while the
various tribes who successively came under the
Mexican sceptre, being held together only by the
pressure of external force, were ready to fall asunder the moment that that force was withdrawn.
The policy of the two nations displayed the principle of fear as contrasted with the principle of
love.
The characteristic features of their religious systems had as little resemblance to each other. The
whole Aztec pantheon partook more or less of the
sanguinary spirit of the terrible war-god who presided over it, and their frivolous ceremonial almost
always terminated with human sacrifice and cannibal




CH. V.]    CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.        163
orgies. But the rites of the Peruvians were of a
more innocent cast, as they tended to a more spiritual worship. For the worship of the Creator is
most nearly approached by that of the heavenly
bodies, which, as they revolve in their bright orbits,
seem to be the most glorious symbols of his beneficence and power.
In the minuter mechanical arts, both showed considerable skill; but in the construction of important public works, of roads, aqueducts, canals, and
in agriculture in all its details, the Peruvians were
much superior. ~Strange that they should have fallen
so far below their rivals in their efforts after a higher
intellectual culture, in astronomical science, more
especially, and in the art of communicating thought
by visible symbols. When we consider the greater
refinement of the Incas, their inferiority to the
Aztecs in these particulars can be explained only by
the fact, that the latter in all probability were indebted for their science to the race who preceded
them in the land, - that shadowy race whose origin
and whose end are alike veiled from the eye of the
inquirer, but who possibly may have sought a refuge
from their ferocious invaders in those regions of Central America the architectural remains of which now
supply us with the most pleasing monuments of Indian civilization. It is with this more polished race,
to whom the Peruvians seem to have borne some
resemblance in their mental and moral organization,
that they should be compared. Had the empire of
the Incas been permitted to extend itself with the




164'       CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.  [BOOK I.
rapid strides with which it was advancing at the
period of the Spanish conquest, the two races might
have come into conflict, or, perhaps, into alliance
with one another.
The Mexicans and Peruvians, so different in the
character of their peculiar civilization, were, it seems
probable, ignorant of each other's existence; and
it may appear singular, that, during the simultaneous
continuance of their empires, some of the seeds of
science and of art, which pass so imperceptibly from
one people to another, should not have found their
way across the interval which separated the two nations. They furnish an interesting example of the
opposite directions which the human mind may take
in its struggle to emerge from darkness into the light
of civilization.
A closer resemblance - as I have more than once
taken occasion to notice - may be found between
the Peruvian institutions and some of the despotic
governments of Eastern Asia; those governments
where despotism appears in its more mitigated form,
and the whole people, under the patriarchal sway of
its sovereign, seem to be gathered together like the
members of one vast family. Such were the Chinese, for example, whom the Peruvians resembled
in their implicit obedience to authority, their mild
yet somewhat stubborn temper, their solicitude
for forms, their reverence for ancient usage, their
skill in the minuter manufactures, their imitative
rather than inventive cast of mind, and their invincible patience, which serves instead of a more




CH. V.]      CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.           16b
adventurous spirit for the execution of difficult undertakings.34
A still closer analogy may be found with the natives of Hindostan in their division into castes, their
worship of the heavenly bodies and the elements of
nature, and their acquaintance with the scientific
principles of husbandry. To the ancient Egyptians,
also, they bore considerable resemblance in the same
particulars, as well as in those ideas of a future existence which led them to attach so much importance to the permanent preservation of the body.
But we shall look in vain in the history of the
East for a parallel to the absolute control exercised
by the Incas over their subjects. In the East, this
was founded on physical power, - on the external
resources of the government. The authority of the
Inca might be compared with that of the Pope in
the day of his might, when Christendom trembled
at the thunders of the Vatican, and the successor of
St. Peter set his foot on the necks of princes. But
the authority of the Pope was founded on opinion.
His temporal power was nothing. The empire of
the Incas rested on both.  It was a theocracy more
potent in its operation than that of the Jews; for,
though the sanction of the law might be as great
34 Count Carli has amused him- presence of his people, to show his
self with tracing out the different respect for agriculture. And the
points of resemblance between the solstices and equinoxes were noted,
Chinese and the Peruvians. The to determine the periods of their
emperor of China was styled the religious festivals. The coincison of Heaven or of the Sun. He dences are curious. Lettres Am6rialso held a plough once a year in caines, tom. II. pp. 7, 8.




166        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS    [BOOK I.
among the latter, the law was expounded by a human lawgiver, the servant and representative of
Divinity. But the Inca was both the lawgiver and
the law. He was not merely the representative of
Divinity, or, like the Pope, its vicegerent, but he
was Divinity itself. The violation of his ordinance
was sacrilege. Never was there a scheme of government enforced by such terrible sanctions, or
which bore so oppressively on the subjects of it.
For it reached not only to the visible acts, but to
the private conduct, the words, the very thoughts, of
its vassals.
It added not a little to the efficacy of the government, that, below the sovereign, there was an order
of hereditary nobles of the same divine original with
himself, who, placed far below himself, were still
immeasurably above the rest of the community, not
merely by descent, but, as it would seem, by their
intellectual nature. These were the exclusive depositaries of power, and, as their long hereditary
training made them familiar with their vocation,
and secured them implicit deference from the multitude, they became the prompt and well-practised
agents for carrying out the executive measures of the
administration.  All that occurred throughout the
wide extent of his empire - such was the perfect
system of communication - passed in review, as it
were, before the eyes of the monarch, and a thousand
hands, armed with irresistible authority, stood ready
in every quarter to do his bidding. Was it not, as
we have said, the most oppressive, though the mildest, of despotisms?




tH. V.]     CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.       167
It was the mildest, from the very circumstance,
that the transcendent rank of the sovereign, and the
humble, nay, superstitious, devotion to his will made
it superfluous to assert this will by acts of violence
or rigor. The great mass of the people may have
appeared to his eyes as but little removed above the
condition of the brute, formed to minister to his
pleasures.  But, from  their very helplessness, he
regarded them with feelings of commiseration, like
those which a kind master might feel for the poor
animals committed to his charge, or - to do justice
to the beneficent character attributed to many of
the Incas -that a parent might feel for his young
and impotent offspring. The laws were carefully
directed to their preservation and personal comfort.
The people were not allowed to be employed on
works pernicious to their health, nor to pine- a
sad contrast to their subsequent destiny — under
the imposition of tasks too heavy for their powers.
They were never made the victims of public or private extortion; and a benevolent forecast watched
carefully over their necessities, and provided for their
relief in seasons of infirmity, and for their sustenance in health. The government of the Incas,
however arbitrary in form, was in its spirit truly
patriarchal.
Yet in this there was nothing cheering to the dignity of human nature. What the people had was
conceded as a boon, not as a right. When a nation
was brought under the sceptre of the Incas, it
resigned every personal right, even the rights dear



168        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.  [BOOK I.
est to humanity. Under this extraordinary polity,
a people advanced in many of the social refinements,
well skilled in manufactures and agriculture, were
unacquainted, as we have seen, with money. They
had nothing that deserved to be called property.
They could follow no craft, could engage in no
labor, no amusement, but such as was specially
provided by law. They could not change their
residence or their dress without a license from the
government. They could not even exercise the freedom which is conceded to the most abject in other
countries, that of selecting their own wives. The
imperative spirit of despotism would not allow them
to be happy or miserable in any way but that established by law.  The power of free agencythe inestimable and inborn right of every human
being - was annihilated in Peru.
The astonishing mechanism of the Peruvian polity
could have resulted only from the combined authority
of opinion and positive power in the ruler to an extent unprecedented in the history of man.  Yet
that it should have so successfully gone into operation, and so long endured, in opposition to the taste,
the prejudices, and the very principles of our nature,
is a strong proof of a generally wise and temperate
administration of the government.
The policy habitually pursued by the Incas foi
the prevention of evils that might have disturbed the
order of things is well exemplified in their provisions gainst poverty and idleness. In these they
rightly discerned the two great causes of disaffection




Cu. V.]         CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.                  169
in a populous community. The industry of the
people was secured not only by their compulsory
occupations at home, but by their employment on
those great public works which covered every part
of the country, and which still bear testimony in
their decay to their primitive grandeur. Yet it may
well astonish us to find, that the natural difficulty
of these undertakings, sufficiently great in itself,
considering the imperfection of their tools and machinery, was inconceivably enhanced by the politic
contrivance of government. The royal edifices of
Quito, we are assured by the Spanish conquerors,
were constructed of huge masses of stone, many of
which were carried all the way along the mountain
roads from Cuzco, a distance of several hundred
leagues.35    The great square of the capital was filled
to a considerable depth with mould brought with incredible labor up the steep slopes of the Cordilleras
from the distant shores of the Pacific Ocean.36 La35 "Era muy principal intento  Prim., MS. - Also Antig. y Moque la gente no holgase, que dava numentos del Peru, MS.
causa a que despues que los Ingas  36 This was literally gold dust;
estuvieron en paz hacer traer de for Ondegardo states, that, when
Quito al Cuzco piedra que venia de governor of Cuzco, he caused great
provincia en provincia para hacer quantities of gold vessels and orcasas para si 6 pa el Sol en gran  naments to be disinterred from the
eantidad, y del Cuzco llevalla a sand in which they had been seQuito pa el mismo efecto,..... y  creted by the natives. " Que toda
asi destas cosas hacian los Ingas aquella plaza del Cuzco le sacaron
muchas de poco provecho y de la tierra propia, y se llev6 a otras
escesivo travajo en que traian ocu- partes por cosa de gran estima, 6
padas las provincias ordinariamte, y  la hincheron de arena de la costa
en fin el travajo era causa de su  de la mar, como hasta dos palmos
conservacion."  Ondegardo, Rel. y medio en algunas partes, mas
VOL. I.             22




170           CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.           [BooK I.
bor was regarded not only as a means, but as an
end, by the Peruvian law.
With their manifold provisions against poverty the
reader has already been made acquainted. They
were so perfect, that, in their wide extent of territory, - much of it smitten with the curse of barrenness, - no man, however humble, suffered from
the want of food and clothing. Famine, so common
a scourge in every other American nation, so common at that period in every country of civilized
Europe, was an evil unknown in the dominions of
the Incas.
The most enlightened of the Spaniards who first
visited Peru, struck with the general appearance of
plenty and prosperity, and with the astonishing order
with which every thing throughout the country was
regulated, are loud in their expressions of admiration.   No better government, in their opinion, could
have been devised for the people. Contented with
their condition, and free from vice, to borrow the
language of an eminent authority of that early day,
the mild and docile character of the Peruvians
sembraron por toda ella muchos que toda la tierra junta tubo nerasos de oro 6 plata, y hovejuelas cesidad de entender en ello, por
y hombrecillos pequenos de lo que la plaza es grande, y no tiene
mismo, lo cual se ha sacado en numero las cargas que en ella enmucha cantidad, que todo lo he- traron; y la costa por lo mas cerca
mos visto; desta arena estaba toda esta mas de nobenta leguas a lo
la plaza, quando yo fui a governar que creo, y cierto yo me satisfice,
aquella Ciudad; 6 si fue verdad porque todos dicen, que aquel
que aquella se trajo de ellos, afir- genero de arena, no lo hay hasta
man 6 tienen puestos en sus re- la costa."  Rel. Seg., MS.
gistros, paresceme que sea ansi,




tH. V.]        CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.                     171
would have well fitted them to receive the teachings of Christianity, had the love of conversion,
instead of gold, animated the breasts of the Conquerors.37    And a philosopher of a later time, warmed by the contemplation of the picture -which his
own fancy had colored —of public prosperity and
private happiness under the rule of the Incas, pronounces     "the    moral man      in  Peru   far superior to
the European.' 38
Yet such results are scarcely reconcilable with
the theory of the government I have attempted to
analyze.     Where there is no free agency, there can
be no morality. Where there is no temptation,
37 " Y  si Dios permitiera que  try; and that every thing was
tubieran quien con celo de Cristi- conducted with the greatest order,
andad, y no con ramo de codicia, and entire submission to authority.
en lo pasado, les dieran entera The panegyric is somewhat too
noticia de nuestra sagrada Religion, unqualified for a whole nation, and
era gente en que bien imprimiera, may lead one to suspect that the
segun vemos por lo que ahora con  stings of remorse for his own treatla buena orden que hay se obra."  ment of the natives goaded the
Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 22. dying veteran into a higher esti
But the most emphatic testimony  mate of their deserts than was
to the merits of the people is that strictly warranted by fects. Yet
afforded by Mancio Sierra Lejese- this testimony by such a man at
ma, the last survivor of the early  such a time is too rem::rkable, as
Spanish Conquerors, who settled  well as too honorable to the Peruin Peru. In the preamble to his vians, to be passed over in silence
testament, made, as he states, to  by the historian; and I have transrelieve his conscience, at the time  ferred the document in the original
of his death, he declares that the  to Appendix, No. 4.
whole population, under the Incas,  38 " Sans doute l'homme mnoral
was distinguished by sobriety and  du Perou etoit infiniment plus perindustry; that such things as rob- fectionne que l'Europeen."  Carli,
bery and theft were unknown; that, Lettres Americaines, tom. I. p.
far from licentiousness, there was  215.
not even a prostitute in the coun



172        CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.   [BooK I.
there can be little claim to virtue. Where the
routine is rigorously prescribed by law, the law, and
not the man, must have the credit of the conduct.
If that government is the best, which is felt the
least, which encroaches on the natural liberty of the
subject only so far as is essential to civil subordination, then of all governments devised by man the
Peruvian has the least real claim to our admiration.
It is not easy to comprehend the genius and the
full import of institutions so opposite to those of our
own free republic, where every man, however humble his condition, may aspire to the highest honors
of the state, - may select his own career, and carve
out his fortune in his own way; where the light
of knowledge, instead of being concentrated on a
chosen few, is shed abroad like the light of day, and
suffered to fall equally on the poor and the rich;
where the collision of man with man wakens a generous emulation that calls out latent talent and tasks
the energies to the utmost; where consciousness of
independence gives a feeling of self-reliance unknown to the timid subjects of a despotism; where,
in short, the government is made for man, -not as
in Peru, where man seemed to be made only for the
government. The New World is the theatre on
which these two political systems, so opposite in
their character, have been carried into operation.
The empire of the Incas has passed away and left
no trace. The other great experiment is still going
on, - the experiment which is to solve the problem,
so long contested in the Old World, of the capacity




CH. V.]        CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS.                173
of man for self-government. Alas for humanity, if
it should fail!
The testimony of the Spanish conquerors is not
uniform in respect to the favorable influence exerted
by the Peruvian institutions on the character of the
people. Drinking and dancing are said to have
been the pleasures to which they were immoderately
addicted.    Like the slaves and serfs in other lands,
whose position excluded them      from more serious and
ennobling   occupations, they     found a substitute    in
frivolous or sensual indulgence. Lazy, luxurious,
and licentious, are the epithets bestowed on them by
one of those who saw them at the Conquest, but
whose pen was not too friendly to the Indian.39 Yet
the spirit of independence could hardly be strong in
a people who had no interest in the soil, no personal
rights to defend; and the facility with which they
yielded to the Spanish invader -      after every allowance for their comparative inferiority - argues a deplorable destitution of that patriotic feeling which
holds life as little in comparison with freedom.
But we must not judge too hardly of the unfortu39 "Heran muy dados a la luju- traia a la voluntad hacian. Heran
ria y al bever, tenian acceso carnal estos orejones muy soberbios y
con las hermanas y las mugeres de presuntuosos..... Tenian otras
sus padres como no fuesen sus muchas maldades que por ser mumismas madres, y aun algunos avia chas no las digo."  Pedro Pizarro,
que con ellas mismas lo hacian y Descub. y Conq., MS.
ansi mismo con sus hijas. Estando  These random aspersions of the
borrachos tocavan algunos en el hard conqueror show too gross an
pecado nefando, emborrachavanse ignorance of the institutions of the
muy a menudo, y estando borra- people to merit much confidence as
chos todo lo que el demonio les to what is said of their character.




174         CIVILIZATION OF THE INCAS.      [BOOK I.
nate native, because he quailed before the civilization
of the European. We must not be insensible to the
really great results that were achieved by the government of the Incas. We must not forget, that,
under their rule, the meanest of the people enjoyed
a far greater degree of personal comfort, at least,
a greater exemption from physical suffering, than
was possessed by similar classes in other nations on
the American continent, - greater, probably, than
was possessed by these classes in most of the countries of feudal Europe. Under their sceptre, the
higher orders of the state had made advances in
many of the arts that belong to a cultivated community. The foundations of a regular government
were laid, which, in an age of rapine, secured to
its subjects the inestimable blessings of tranquillity
and safety.   By the well-sustained policy of the
Incas, the rude tribes of the forest were gradually
drawn from their fastnesses, and gathered within
the folds of civilization; and of these materials was
constructed a flourishing and populous empire, such
as was to be found in no other quarter of the American continent.  The defects of this government
were those of over-refinement in legislation, —the
last defects to have been looked for, certainly, in
the American aborigines.
NOTE. I have not thought it necessary to swell this Introduction by
an inquiry into the origin of Peruvian civilization, like that appended to
the history of the Mexican. The Peruvian history doubtless suggests




CH. V.]                  SARMIENTO.                       175
analogies with more than one nation in the East, some of which have
been briefly adverted to in the preceding pages; although these analogies are adduced there not as evidence of a common origin, but as showing the coincidences which might naturally spring up among different
nations under the same phase of civilization. Such coincidences are
neither so numerous nor so striking as those afforded by the Aztec history. The correspondence presented by the astronomical science of the
Mexicans is alone of more importance than all the rest. Yet the light
of analogy, afforded by the institutions of the Incas, seems to point, as
far as it goes, towards the same direction; and as the investigation could
present but little substantially to confirm, and still less to confute, the
views taken in the former disquisition, I have not thought it best to
fatigue the reader with it.
Two of the prominent authorities on whom I have relied in this Introductory portion of the work, are Juan de Sarmiento and the Licentiate Ondegardo. Of the former I have been able to collect no information beyond what is afforded by his own writings. In the title prefixed
to his manuscript, he is styled President of the Council of the Indies, a
post of high authority, which infers a weight of character in the party,
and means of information, that entitle his opinions on colonial topics to
great deference.
These means of information were much enlarged by Sarmiento's
visit to the colonies, during the administration of Gasca. Having conceived the design of compiling a history of the ancient Peruvian institutions, he visited Cuzco, as he tells us, in 1550, and there drew from
the natives themselves the materials for his narrative. His position
gave him access to the most authentic sources of knowledge, and from
the lips of the Inca nobles, the best instructed of the conquered race, he
gathered the traditions of their national history and institutions. The
quipus formed, as we have seen, an imperfect system of mnemonics,
requiring constant attention, and much inferior to the Mexican hieroglyphics. It was only by diligent instruction that they wvere made
available to historical purposes; and this instruction was so far neglected after the Conquest, that the ancient annals of the country would
have perished with the generation which was the sole depositary of
them, had it not been for the efforts of a few intelligent scholars, like
Sarmiento, who saw the importance, at this critical period, of cultivating




176                      SARMIENTO.                    [BooK I.
an intercourse with the natives, and drawing from them their hidden
stores of information.
To give still further authenticity to his work, Sarmiento travelled over
the country, examined the principal objects of interest with his own
eyes, and thus verified the accounts of the natives as far as possible by
personal observation. The result of these labors was his work entitled,
"' Relacion de la sucesion y govierno de las Yngas Seilores naturales
que fueron de las Provincias del Peru y otras cosas tocantes a aquel
Reyno, para el Iltmo. Seflor Dn Juan Sarmiento, Presidente del Consejo
R1 de Indias."
It is divided into chapters, and embraces about four hundred folio
pages in manuscript. The introductory portion of the work is occupied
with the traditionary tales of the origin and early period of the Incas;
teeming, as usual, in the antiquities of a barbarous people, with legendary fables of the most wild and monstrous character. Yet these puerile
conceptions afford an inexhaustible mine for the labors of the antiquarian, who endeavours to unravel the allegorical web which a cunning
priesthood had devised as symbolical of those mysteries of creation that
it was beyond their power to comprehend. But Sarmiento happily confines himself to the mere statement of traditional fables, without the
chimerical ambition to explain them.
From this region of romance, Sarmiento passes to the institutions of
the Peruvians, describes their ancient polity, their religion, their progress in the arts, especially agriculture; and presents, in short, an
elaborate picture of the civilization which they reached under the Inca
dynasty. This part of his work, resting, as it does, on the best authority, confirmed in many instances by his own observation, is of unquestionable value, and is written with an apparent respect for truth, that
engages the confidence of the reader. The concluding portion of the
manuscript is occupied with the civil history of the country. The reigns
of the early Incas, which lie beyond the sober province of history, he
despatches with commendable brevity. But on the three last reigns,
and fortunately of the greatest princes who occupied the Peruvian
throne, he is more diffuse. This was comparatively firm ground for
the chronicler, for the events were too recent to be obscured by the
vulgar legends that gather like moss round every incident of the older
time. His account stops with the Spanish invasion; for this story,
Sarmiento felt, might be safely left to his contemporaries who acted a
part in it, but whose taste and education had qualified them but indifferently for exploring the antiquities and social institutions of the natives.
Sarmiento's work is composed in a simple, perspicuous style, without
that ambition of rhetorical display too common with his countrymen.




CH. V.1                 ONDEGARDO.                        177
He writes with honest candor, and while he does ampie justice to the
merits and capacity of the conquered races, he notices with indignation
the atrocities of the Spaniards and the demoralizing tendency of the
Conquest. It may be thought, indeed, that he forms too high an estimate of the attainments of the nation under the Incas. And it is not
improbable, that, astonished by the vestiges it afforded of an original
civilization, he became enamoured of his subject, and thus exhibited it
in colors somewhat too glowing to the eye of the European. But this
was an amiable failing, not too largely shared by the stern Conquerors,
who subverted the institutions of the country, and saw little to admire
in it, save its gold. It must be further admitted, that Sarmiento has
no design to impose on his reader, and that he is careful to distinguish
between what he reports on hearsay, and what on personal experience.
The Father of History himself does not discriminate between these two
things more carefully.
Neither is the Spanish historian to be altogether vindicated from the
superstition which belongs to his time; and we often find him referring
to the immediate interposition of Satan those effects which might quite
as well be charged on the perverseness of man. But this was common
to the age, and to the wisest men in it; and it is too much to demand
of a man to be wiser than his generation. It is sufficient praise of Sarmiento, that, in an age when superstition was too often allied with fanaticism, he seems to have had no tincture of bigotry in his nature. His
heart opens with benevolent fulness to the unfortunate native; and his
language, while it is not kindled into the religious glow of the missionary, is warmed by a generous ray of philanthropy that embraces the
conquered, no less than the conquerors, as his brethren.
Notwithstanding the great value of Sarmiento's work for the information it affords of Peru under the Incas, it is but little known, has been
rarely consulted by historians, and still remains among the unpublished
manuscripts which lie, like uncoined bullion, in the secret chambers of
the Esourial.
The other authority to whom I have alluded, the Licentiate Polo de
Ondegardo, was a highly respectable jurist, whose name appears frequently in the affairs of Peru. I find no account of the period when he
first came into the country. But he was there on the arrival of Gasca,
and resided at Lima under the usurpation of Gonzalo Pizarro. When
the artful Cepeda endeavoured to secure the signatures of the inhabitants
to the instrument proclaiming the sovereignty of his chief, we find Ondegardo taking the lead among those of his profession in resisting it.
On Gasca's arrival, he consented to take a commission in his army. At
the close of the rebellion he was made corregidor of La Plata, and subsequently of Cuzco, in which honorable station he seems to have reVOL. I.             23




1? ~                    ONDEGARDO.                    rBoox I.
maincd several years. In the exercise of his magisterial functions, he
was brought into familiar intercourse with the natives, and had ample
opportunity for studying their laws and ancient customs. He conducted
himself with such prudence and moderation, that he seems to have won
the confidence not only of his countrymen but of the Indians; while the
administration was careful to profit by his large experience in devising
measures for the better government of the colony.
The Relaciones, so often cited in this History, were prepared at the
suggestion of the viceroys, the first being addressed to the Marques de
Canete, in 1561, and the second, ten years later, to the Conde de Nieva.
The two cover about as much ground as Sarmiento's manuscript; and
the second memorial, written so long after the first, may be thought to
intimate the advancing age of the author, in the greater carelessness and
diffuseness of the composition.
As these documents are in the nature of answers to the interrogatories propounded by government, the range of topics might seem to be
limited within narrower bounds than the modern historian would desire.
These queries, indeed, had particular reference to the revenues, tributes,
— the financial administration, in short, of the Incas; and on these obscure topics the communication of Ondegardo is particularly full. But
the enlightened curiosity of government embraced a far wider range;
and the answers necessarily implied an acquaintance with the domestic
policy of the Incas, with their laws, social habits, their religion, science,
and arts, in short, with all that make up the elements of civilization.
Ondegardo's memoirs, therefore, cover the whole ground of inquiry for
the philosophic historian.
In the management of these various subjects, Ondegardo displays both
acuteness and erudition. He never shrinks from the discussion, however difficult; and while he gives his conclusions with an air of modesty,
it is evident that he feels conscious of having derived his information
through the most authentic channels. He rejects the fabulous with disdain; decides on the probabilities of such facts as he relates, and candidly exposes the deficiency of evidence. Far from displaying the
simple enthusiasm of the well-meaning but credulous missionary, he
proceeds with the cool and cautious step of a lawyer accustomed to the
conflict of testimony and the uncertainty of oral tradition. This circumspect manner of proceeding, and the temperate character of his judgments, entitle Ondegardo to much higher consideration as an authority
than most of his countrymen who have treated of Indian antiquities.
There runs through his writings a vein of humanity, shown particularly in his tenderness to the unfortunate natives, to whose ancient civilization he does entire, but not extravagant, justice; while, like Sarmiento,
he fearlessly denounces the excesses of his own countrymen, and admits




Cn. V.]                 ONDEGARDO.                        179
the dark reproach they had brought on the honor of the nation. But
while this censure forms the strongest ground for condemnation of the
Conquerors, since it comes from the lips of a Spaniard like themselves, it
proves, also, that Spain in this age of violence could send forth from her
bosom wise and good men who refused to make common cause with the
licentious rabble around them. Indeed, proof enough is given in these
very memorials of the unceasing efforts of the colonial government,
from the good viceroy Mendoza downwards, to secure protection and
the benefit of a mild legislation to the unfortunate natives. But the iron
Conquerors, and the colonist whose heart softened only to the touch of
gold, presented a formidable barrier to improvement.
Ondegardo's writings are honorably distinguished by freedom from
that superstition which is the debasing characteristic of the times; a
superstition shown in the easy credit given to the marvellous, and this
equally whether in heathen or in Christian story; for in the former the
eye of credulity could discern as readily the direct interposition of Satan, as in the latter the hand of the Almighty. It is this ready belief
in a spiritual agency, whether for good or for evil, which forms one of
the most prominent features in the writings of the sixteenth century.
Nothing could be more repugnant to the true spirit of philosophical
inquiry, or more irreconcilable with rational criticism. Far from betraying such weakness, Ondegardo writes in a direct and business-like
manner, estimating things for what they are worth by the plain rule of
common-sense. He keeps the main object of his argument ever in view,
without allowing himself, like the garrulous chroniclers of the period,
to be led astray into a thousand rambling episodes that bewilder the
reader and lead to nothing.
Ondegardo's memoirs deal not only with the antiquities of the nation,
but with its actual condition, and with the best means for redressing the
manifold evils to which it was subjected under the stern rule of its conquerors. His suggestions are replete with wisdom, and a merciful
policy, that would reconcile the interests of government with the prosperity and happiness of its humblest vassal. Thus, while his contemporaries gathered light from his suggestions as to the present condition
of affairs, the historian of later times is no less indebted to him for information in respect to the past. His manuscript was freely consulted
by Herrera, and the reader, as he peruses the pages of the learned historian of the Indies, is unconsciously enjoying the benefit of the researches of Ondegardo. His valuable Relaciones thus had their uses for
future generations, though they have never been admitted to the honors
of the press. The copy in my possession, like that of Sarmiento's
manuscript, for which I am indebted to that industrious bibliographer,
Mr. Rich, formed part of the magnificent collection of Lord Kings



180                     ONDEGARDO.                    [BOOK 1.
borough, - a name ever to be held in honor by the scholar for his indefatigable efforts to illustrate the antiquities of America.
Ondegardo's manuscripts, it should be remarked, do not bear his signature. But they contain allusions to several actions of the writer's
life, which identify them, beyond any reasonable doubt, as his production. In the archives of Simancas is a duplicate copy of the first memorial, Relacion Primera, though, like the one in the Escurial, without
its author's name. Muiioz assigns it to the pen of Gabriel de Rojas, a
distinguished cavalier of the Conquest. This is clearly an error; for
the author of the manuscript identifies himself with Ondegardo, by declaring, in his reply to the fifth interrogatory, that he was the person
who discovered the mummies of the Incas in Cuzco; an act expressly
referred, both by Acosta and Garcilasso, to the Licentiate Polo de Ondegardo, when corregidor of that city. - Should the savans of Madrid hereafter embrace among the publications of valuable manuscripts these
Relaciones, they should be careful not to be led into an error here, by
the authority of a critic like Munoz, whose criticism is rarely at fault




BOOK SECOND.
DISCOVERY OF PERU.








BOOK II.
DISCOVERY OF PERU.
CHAPTER I.
ANCIENT AND MODERN SCIENCE. - ART OF NAVIGATION. - MARITIME DISCOVERY. - SPIRIT OF THE SPANIARDS. - POSSESSIONS IN
THE NEW WORLD. —RUMORS CONCERNING PERU.
WHATEVER difference of opinion may exist as to
the comparative merit of the ancients and the moderns in the arts, in poetry, eloquence, and all that
depends on imagination, there can be no doubt that
in science the moderns have eminently the advantage. It could not be otherwise. In the early ages
of the world, as in the early period of life, there was
the freshness of a morning existence, when the gloss
of novelty was on every thing that met the eye;
when the senses, not blunted by familiarity, were
more keenly alive to the beautiful, and the mind,
under the influence of a healthy and natural taste,
was not perverted by philosophical theory; when
the simple was necessarily connected with the beautiful, and the epicurean intellect, sated by repetition,




184           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BOOx II.
had not begun to seek for stimulants in the fantastic
and capricious. The realms of fancy were all untravelled, and its fairest flowers had not been gath
ered, nor its beauties despoiled, by the rude touch
of those who affected to cultivate them. The wing
of genius was not bound to the earth by the cold and
conventional rules of criticism, but was permitted to
take its flight far and wide over the broad expanse
of creation.
But with science it was otherwise. No genius
could suffice for the creation of facts, - hardly for
their detection. They were to be gathered in by
painful industry; to be collected from careful observation and experiment. Genius, indeed, might arrange and combine these facts into new forms, and
elicit from their combinations new and important
inferences; and in this process might almost rival in
originality the creations of the poet and the artist.
But if the processes of science are necessarily slow,
they are sure. There is no retrograde movement in
her domain. Arts may fade, the Muse become
dumb, a moral lethargy may lock up the faculties of
a nation, the nation itself may pass away and leave
only the memory of its existence, but the stores of
science it has garnered up will endure for ever. As
other nations come upon the stage, and new forms
of civilization arise, the monuments of art and of
imagination, productions of an older time, will lie
as an obstacle in the path of improvement. They
cannot be built upon; they occupy the ground which
the new aspirant for immortality would cover. The




CH. I.]  ANCIENT AND MODERN SCIENCE.      185
whole work is to be gone over again, and other forms
of beauty-whether higher or lower in the scale
of merit, but unlike the past - must arise to take a
place by their side. But, in science, every stone
that has been laid remains as the foundation for
another. The coming generation takes up the work
where the preceding left it. There is no retrograde
movement. The individual nation may recede, but
science still advances. Every step that has been
gained makes the ascent easier for those who come
after. Every step carries the patient inquirer after
truth higher and higher towards heaven, and unfolds
to him, as he rises, a wider horizon, and new and
more magnificent views of the universe.
Geography partook of the embarrassments which
belonged to every other department of science in the
primitive ages of the world. The knowledge of the
earth could come only from an extended commerce;
and commerce is founded on artificial wants or an
enlightened curiosity, hardly compatible with the
earlier condition of society. In the infancy of
nations, the different tribes, occupied with their domestic feuds, found few occasions to wander beyond
the mountain chain or broad stream that formed the
natural boundary of their domains. The Phoenicians, it is true, are said to have sailed beyond the
Pillars of Hercules, and to have launched out on the
great western ocean. But the adventures of these
ancient voyagers belong to the mythic legends 6f
antiquity, and ascend far beyond the domain of authentic record.
VOL. I.        24




186            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOx II.
The Greeks, quick and adventurous, skilled in
mechanical art, had many of the qualities of successful navigators, and within the limits of their little
inland sea ranged fearlessly and freely. But the
conquests of Alexander did more to extend the
limits of geographical science, and opened an acquaintance with the remote countries of the East.
Yet the march of the conqueror is slow in comparison with the movements of the unencumbered traveller. The Romans were still less enterprising than
the Greeks, were less commercial in their character.
The contributions to geographical knowledge grew
with the slow acquisitions of empire. But their system was centralizing in its tendency; and instead
of taking an outward direction and looking abroad
for discovery, every part of the vast imperial domain
turned towards the capital as its head and central
point of attraction. The Roman conqueror pursued
his path byland, not by sea. But the water is the
great highway between nations, the true element for
the discoverer. The Romans were not a maritime
people. At the close of their empire, geographical
science could hardly be said to extend farther than
to an acquaintance with Europe, -and this not its
more northern division, - together with a portion
of Asia and Africa; while they had no other conception of a world beyond the western waters than was
to be gathered from the fortunate prediction of the
poet.'
1 Seneca's well-known predic- most remarkable random prophecy
tion, in his Medea, is, perhaps, the on record. For it is not a avwple




Cn. I.]       ART OF NAVIGATION.            187
Then followed the Middle Ages; the dark ages,
as they are called, though in their darkness were
matured those seeds of knowledge, which, in fulness
of time, were to spring up into new and more glorious forms of civilization. The organization of society became more favorable to geographical science.
Instead of one overgrown, lethargic empire, oppressing every thing by its colossal weight, Europe
was broken up into various independent communities, many of which, adopting liberal forms of government, felt all the impulses natural to freemen;
and  the petty republics on the Mediterranean
and the Baltic sent forth their swarms of seamen
in a profitable commerce, that knit together the different countries scattered along the great European
waters.
But the improvements which took place in the
art of navigation, the more accurate measurement
of time, and, above all, the discovery of the polarity
of the magnet, greatly advanced the cause of geographical knowledge.  Instead of creeping timidly
along the coast, or limiting his expeditions to the
narrow basins of inland waters, the voyager might
now spread his sails boldly on the deep, secure of
a guide to direct his bark unerringly across the illimitable waste. The consciousness of this power
extension of the boundaries of the,  Quibus Oceanus
known parts of the  globe that is  Vincula rerum laxet, et ingens
so confidently announced, but the  Pateat tellus, Typhique Novos
Detegat Orbes."
existence of a New World across
the waters, to be revealed in corn-  It was the lucky hit of the phiing ages.               losopher rather than the poet.




188           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BOOK II.
led thought to travel in a new direction; and the
mariner began to look with earnestness for another
path to the Indian Spice-islands than that by which
the Eastern caravans had traversed the continent of
Asia. The nations on whom the spirit of enterprise, at this crisis, naturally descended, were Spain
and Portugal, placed, as they were, on the outposts
of the European continent, commanding the great
theatre of future discovery.
Both countries felt the responsibility of their new
position. The crown of Portugal was constant in
its efforts, through the fifteenth century, to find a
passage round the southern point of Africa into the
Indian Ocean; though so timid was the navigation,
that every fresh headland became a formidable barrier; and it was not till the latter part of the century
that the adventurous Diaz passed quite round the
Stormy Cape, as he termed it, but which John.he
Second, with happier augury, called the Cape of
Good Hope. But, before Vasco de Gama had availed himself of this discovery to spread his sails in the
Indian seas, Spain entered on her glorious career,
and sent Columbus across the western waters.
The object of the great navigator was still the
discovery of a route to India, but by the West instead of the east.  He had no expectation of
meeting with a continent in his way, and, aftei
repeated voyages, he remained in his original error, dying, as is well known, in the conviction that
it was the eastern shore of Asia which he had
reached. It was the same object which directed




CH. I.]       MARITIME DISCOVERY.           189
the nautical enterprises of those who followed in the
Admiral's track; and the discovery of a strait into
the Indian Ocean was the burden of every order
from the government, and the design of many an
expedition to different points of the new  conti
nent, which seemed to stretch its leviathan length
along from one pole to the other. The discovery
of an Indian passage is the true key to the maritime movements of the fifteenth and the first half
of the sixteenth centuries. It was the great leading
idea that gave the character to the enterprise of
the age.
It is not easy at this time to comprehend the impulse given to Europe by the discovery of America.
It was not the gradual acquisition of some border
territory, a province or a kingdom that had been
gained, but a New World that was now thrown
open to the European. The races of animals, the
mineral treasures, the vegetable forms, and the varied aspects of nature, man in the different phases
of civilization, filled the mind with entirely new
sets of ideas, that changed the habitual current of
thought and. stimulated it to indefinite conjecture.
The eagerness to explore the wonderful secrets of
the new hemisphere became so active, that the principal cities of Spain were, in a manner, depopulated, as emigrants thronged one after another to take
their chance upon the deep.2  It was a world of ro2 The Venetian ambassador, period of the commencement of our
Andrea Navagiero, who travelled narrative, notices the general fever
through Spain in 1525, near the of emigration. Seville, in particu



190            DISCOVERY OF PERU.          [BOOK II.
mance that was thrown open; for, whatever might
be the luck of the adventurer, his reports on his
return were tinged with a coloring of romance that
stimulated still higher the sensitive fancies of his
countrymen, and nourished the chimerical sentiments
of an age of chivalry.  They listened with attentive ears to tales of Amazons which seemed to realize the classic legends of antiquity, to stories of
Patagonian giants, to flaming pictures of an El Dorado, where the sands sparkled with gems, and
golden pebbles as large as birds' eggs were dragged
in nets out of the rivers.
Yet that the adventurers were no impostors, but
dupes, too easy dupes of their own credulous fancies,
is shown by the extravagant character of their enterprises; by expeditions in search of the magical
Fountain of Health, of the golden Temple of Doboyba, of the golden sepulchres of Zenu; for gold
was ever floating before their distempered vision,
and the name of Castilla del Oro, Golden Castile,
the most unhealthy and unprofitable region of the
Isthmus, held out a bright promise to the unfortunate settler, who too frequently, instead of gold,
found there only his grave.
In this realm of enchantment, all the accessories
served to maintain the illusion. The simple natives,
with their defenceless bodies and rude weapons
were no match for the European warrior armed to
lar, the great port of embarkation, almost to the women." Viaggio
was so stripped of its inhabitants, fatto in Spagna, (Vinegia, 1563,)
he says, "that the city was left fol. 15.




(jH. 1.J   SPIRIT OF THE SPANIARDS.       191
the teeth in mail. The odds were as great as those
found in any legend of chivalry, where the lance
)f the good knight overturned hundreds at a touch.
The perils that lay in the discoverers path, and the
sufferings he had to sustain, were scarcely inferior to
those that beset the knight-errant.  Hunger and
thirst and fatigue, the deadly effluvia of the morass
with its swarms of venomous insects, the cold of
mountain snows, and the scorching sun of the tropics,
these were the lot of every cavalier who came to
seek his fortunes in the New World. It was the
reality of romance. The life of the Spanish adventurer was one chapter more - and not the least remarkable - in the chronicles of knight-errantry.
The character of the warrior took somewhat of
the exaggerated coloring shed over his exploits.
Proud and vainglorious, swelled with lofty anticipations of his destiny, and an invincible confidence
in his own resources, no danger could appall and no
toil could tire him. The greater the danger, indeed,
the higher the charm; for his soul revelled in excitement, and the enterprise without peril wanted that
spur of romance which was necessary to rouse his
energies into action. Yet in the motives of action
meaner influences were strangely mingled with the
loftier, the temporal with the spiritual. Gold was
the incentive and the recompense, and in the pursuit
of it his inflexible nature rarely hesitated as to the
means. His courage was sullied with cruelty, the
cruelty that flowed equally- strange as it may seem
- from his avarice and his religion; religion as it




192           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BOOK It.
was understood in that age, -the religion of the
Crusader. It was the convenient cloak for a multitude of sins, which covered them even from himself.
The Castilian, too proud for hypocrisy, committed
more cruelties in the name of religion than were
ever practised by the pagan idolater or the fanatical
Moslem. The burning of the infidel was a sacrifice
acceptable to Heaven, and the conversion of those
who survived amply atoned for the foulest offences.
It is a melancholy and mortifying consideration, that
the most uncompromising spirit of intolerance - the
spirit of the Inquisitor at home, and of the Crusader
abroad-should have emanated from     a religion
which preached peace upon earth and good-will
towards man!
What a contrast did these children of Southern
Europe present to the Anglo-Saxon races who scattered themselves along the great northern division of
the western hemisphere! For the principle of action with these latter was not avarice, nor the more
specious pretext of proselytism; but independence,
-independence religious and political. To secure
this, they were content to earn a bare subsistence
by a life of frugality and toil. They asked nothing
from the soil, but the reasonable returns of their own
labor.  No golden visions threw  a deceitful halo
around their path, and beckoned them onwards
through seas of blood to the subversion of an unoffending dynasty. They were content with the slow
but steady progress of their social p..ty. They
patiently endured the privations of tne wilderness,




CH. 1.]    SPIRIT OF THE SPANIARDS.      193
watering the tree of liberty with their tears and with
the sweat of their brow, till it took deep root in the
land and sent up its branches high towards the
heavens; while the communities of the neighbouring continent, shooting up into the sudden splendors
of a tropical vegetation, exhibited, even in their
prime, the sure symptoms of decay.
It would seem to have been especially ordered by
Providence that the discovery of the two great divisions of the American hemisphere should fall to the
two races best fitted to conquer and colonize them.
Thus the northern section was consigned to the
Anglo-Saxon race, whose orderly, industrious habits
found an ample field for development under its colder
skies and on its more rugged soil; while the southern portion, with its rich tropical products and treasures of mineral wealth, held out the most attractive
bait to invite the enterprise of the Spaniard. How
different might have been the result, if the bark of
Columbus had taken a more northerly direction, as
he at one time meditated, and landed its band of
adventurers on the shores of what is now Protestant
America!
Under the pressure of that spirit of nautical enterprise which filled the maritime communities of
Europe in the sixteenth century, the whole extent
of the mighty continent, from Labrador to Terra del
Fuego, was explored in less than thirty years after
its discovery; and in 1521, the Portuguese Maghellan, sailing under the Spanish flag, solved the
problem of the strait, and found a westerly way to
VOL. I.       25




194           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [Boox II
the long sought Spice-islands of India, - greatly to
the astonishment of the Portuguese, who, sailing
from the opposite direction, there met their rivals,
face to face, at the antipodes. But while the whole
eastern coast of the American continent had been
explored, and the central portion of it colonized, -
even after the brilliant achievement of the Mexican
conquest,- the veil was not yet raised that hung
over the golden shores of the Pacific.
Floating rumors had reached the Spaniards, from
time to time, of countries in the far west, teeming
with the metal they so much coveted; but the first
distinct notice of Peru was about the year 1511,
when Vasco Nunez de Balboa, the discoverer of
the Southern Sea, was weighing some gold which he
had collected from the natives. A young barbarian
chieftain, who was present, struck the scales with
his fist, and, scattering the glittering metal around
the apartment, exclaimed, -" If this is what you
prize so much that you are willing to leave your
distant homes, and risk even life itself for it, I can
tell you of a land where they eat and drink out of
golden vessels, and gold is as cheap as iron is with
you." It was not long after this startling intelligence that Balboa achieved the formidable adventure
of scaling the mountain rampart of the isthmus
which divides the two mighty oceans from each
other; when, armed with sword and buckler, he
rushed into the waters of the Pacific, and cried out,
in the true chivalrous vein, that "he claimed this
unknown sea with all that it contained for the king




CH. I.]    RUMORS CONCERNING PERU.        195
of Castile, and that he would make good the claim
against all, Christian or infidel, who dared to gainsay it "!3 All the broad continent and sunny isles
washed by the waters of the Southern Ocean! Little did the bold cavalier comprehend the full import
of his magnificent vaunt.
On this spot he received more explicit tidings of
the Peruvian empire, heard proofs recounted of its
civilization, and was shown drawings of the llama,
whith, to the European eye, seemed a species of
the Arabian camel. But, although he steered his
caravel for these golden realms, and even pushed his
discoveries some twenty leagues south of the Gulf
of St. Michael, the adventure was not reserved for
him. The illustrious discoverer was doomed to fall
a victim to that miserable jealousy with which a
little spirit regards the achievements of a great one.
The Spanish colonial domain was broken up into
a number of petty governments, which were dispensed sometimes to court favorites, though, as the
duties of the post, at this early period, were of
an arduous nature, they were more frequently reserved for men of some practical talent and enterprise. Columbus, by virtue of his original contract with the Crown, had jurisdiction over the territories discovered by himself, embracing some of
the principal islands, and a few places on the continent. This jurisdiction differed from that of other functionaries, inasmuch as it was hereditary; a
3 Herrera, Hist. General, dec. Vidas de Espailoles Celebres, (Ma1, lib. 10, cap. 2. -  Quintana,  drid, 1830,) tom. II. p. 44.




]96            DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [BOOK II
privilege found in the end too considerable for a
subject, and commuted, therefore, for a title and a
pension. These colonial governments were multiplied with the increase of empire, and by the year
1524, the period at which our narrative properly
commences, were scattered over the islands, along the
Isthmus of Darien, the broad tract of Terra Firma,
and the recent conquests of Mexico. Some of these
governments were of no great extent. Others, like
that of Mexico, were of the dimensions of a kingdom; and most had an indefinite range for discovery
assigned to them in their immediate neighbourhood,
by which each of the petty potentates might enlarge
his territorial sway, and enrich his followers and
himself. This politic arrangement best served the
ends of the Crown, by affording a perpetual incentive to the spirit of enterprise. Thus living on their
own little domains at a long distance from the
mother country, these military rulers held a sort of
vice-regal sway, and too frequently exercised it in
the most oppressive and tyrannical manner; op
pressive to the native, and tyrannical towards their
own followers. It was the natural consequence,
when men, originally low in station, and unprepared
by education for office, were suddenly called to the
possession of a brief, but in its nature irresponsible,
authority. It was not till after some sad experience
of these results, that measures were taken to hold
these petty tyrants in check by means of regular
tribunals, or Royal Audiences, as they were termed,
wvhich, composed of men of character and learning,




CH. I.J    RUMORS CONCERNING PERU.         197
might interpose the arm of the law, or, at least,
the voice of remonstrance, for the protection of both
colonist and native.
Among the colonial governors, who were indebted
for their situation to their rank at home, was Don
Pedro Arias de Avila, or Pedrarias, as usually called.
He was married to a daughter of Dona Beatriz de
Bobadilla, the celebrated Marchioness of Moya, best
known as the friend of Isabella the Catholic. He
was a man of some military experience and considerable energy of character. But, as it proved, he was
of a malignant temper; and the base qualities, which
might have passed unnoticed in the obscurity of
private life, were made conspicuous, and perhaps
created in some measure, by sudden elevation to
power; as the sunshine, which operates kindly on a
generous soil, and stimulates it to production, calls
forth from the unwholesome marsh only foul and
pestilent vapors. This man was placed over the
territory of Castilla del Oro, the ground selected by
Nunez de Balboa for the theatre of his discoveries.
Success drew on this latter the jealousy of his superior, for it was crime enough in the eyes of Pedrarias to deserve too well. The tragical history of
this cavalier belongs to a period somewhat earlier
than that with which we are to be occupied. It has
been traced by abler hands than mine, and, though
brief, forms one of the most brilliant passages in the
annals of the American conquerors.4
4 The memorable adventures of recorded by Quintana, (EspainoVasco Nufez de Balboa have been les Celebres, tor. II.) and bv




198                 DISCOVERY OF PERIT.                [BooK II
But though Pedrarias was willing to cut short the
glorious career of his rival, he was not insensible to
the important consequences of his discoveries. He
saw at once the unsuitableness of Darien for prosecuting    expeditions on     the Pacific, and, conformably
to the original suggestion of Balboa, in 1519, he
caused his rising capital to be transferred from the
shores of the Atlantic to the ancient site of Panama,
some distance east of the present city of that
name.5     This most unhealthy spot, the cemetery of
many an unfortunate colonist, was favorably situated
for the great object of maritime enterprise; and the
port, from   its central position, afforded the best point
of departure for expeditions, whether to the north
or south, along the wide range of undiscovered
coast that lined the Southern Ocean. Yet in this
new and more favorable position, several years were
Irving in his Companions of Co- puerto que mejor se hallare y mas
lumbus. -It is rare that the life  convenible para la contratacion de
of an individual has formed the  aquel golfo, porque segund lo que
subject of two such elegant memo- Vasco Nuiez escribe, seria muy
rials, produced at nearly the same necesario que alli haya algunos
time, and in different languages, navios, asi para descubrir las cosas
without any communication be- del golfo; yde la comarca d6l, como
tween the authors.               para la contratacion de rescates de
5 The Court gave positive in- las otras cosas necesarias al buen
structions to Pedrarias to make a proveimiento de aquello; 6 para
settlement in the  Gulf of St. que estos navi6s aprovechen es
Michael, in obedience to the sug- menester que se hagan alla'."  Cagestion of Vasco Nufez, that it pitulo de Carta escrita por el Rey
would be the most eligible site for Cat6lico a Pedrarias Davila, ap.
discovery and traffic in the South  Navarrete, Coleccion de los Viages
Sea. "El asiento que se oviere   y Descubrimientos, (Madrid, 1829,)
de hacer en el golfo de S. Miguel tom. III. No. 3.
en la mar del sur debe ser en el




tH. I.]     RUMORS CONCERNING PERU.         199
suffered to elapse before the course of discovery took
the direction of Peru. This was turned exclusively
towards the north, or rather west, in obedience to
the orders of government, which had ever at heart
the detection of a strait that, as was supposed,
must intersect some part or other of the long-extended Isthmus. Armament after armament was
fitted out with this chimerical object; and Pedrarias saw his domain extending every year farther
and farther without deriving any considerable advantage from  his acquisitions.  Veragua, Costa
Rica, Nicaragua, were successively occupied; and
his brave cavaliers forced a way across forest and
mountain and warlike tribes of savages, till, at
Honduras, they came in collision with the companions of Cortes, the Conquerors of Mexico,
who had descended from the great northern plateau on the regions of Central America, and thus
completed the survey of this wild and mysterious
land.
It was not till 1522 that a regular expedition was
despatched in the direction south of Panama, under
the conduct of Pascual de Andagoya, a cavalier of
much distinction in the colony. But that officer
penetrated only to the Puerto de Piiias, the limit of
Balboa's discoveries, when the bad state of his health
compelled him to reembark and abandon his enterprise at its commencement.
6 According to Montesinos, An- ing off the high-mettled animal to
dagoya received a severe injury by the wondering eyes of the natives.
a fall from his horse, while show- (Annales del Peru, MS., aio




200               DISCOVERY OF PERU.             [Bo K II.
Yet the floating rumors of the wealth and civilization of a mighty nation at the South were continually reaching the ears and kindling the dreamy imaginations of the colonists; and it may seem astonishing that an expedition in that direction should
have been so long deferred. But the exact position
and distance of this fairy realm were matter of conjecture. The long tract of intervening country was
occupied by rude and warlike races; and the little
experience which the Spanish navigators had already
had of the neighbouring coast and its inhabitants,
and still more, the tempestuous character of the seas
-for their expeditions had taken place at the most
unpropitious seasons of the year- enhanced the apparent difficulties of the undertaking, and made even
their stout hearts shrink from it.
Such was the state of feeling in the little community of PanamA for several years after its foundation. Meanwhile, the dazzling conquest of Mexico gave a new impulse to the ardor of discovery, and, in   1524, three men weri found in the
colony, in whom the spirit of adventure triumphed
over every consideration of difficulty and danger
1524.) But the Adelantado, in a ing for his premature return, more
memorial of his own discoveries, soothing to his vanity, probably,
drawn up by himself, says nothing than the one usually received.
of this unlucky feat of horseman- This document, important as cor
ship, but imputes his illness to his ing from the pen of one of the
having fallen into the water, an primitive discoverers, is preserved
accident by which he was near in the Indian Archives of Seville,
being drowned, so that it was some and was published by Navarrete
years before he recovered from the Coleccion, tom. III. No 7.
effects of it; a mode of account



CH. I.]    RUMORS CONCERNING PERU.         201
that obstructed the prosecution of the enterprise.
One among them was selected as fitted by his character to conduct it to a successful issue. That man
was Francisco Pizarro; and as he held the same
conspicuous post in the Conquest of Peru that was
occupied by Cortes in that of Mexico, it will be
necessary to take a brief review of his early history.
VOL. I.        26




CHAPTER 1I
FRANCISCO PIZARRO. -HIS EARLY HISTORY.- FIRST EXPEDITION TO
THE SOUTH.    DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS. -SHARP ENCOITr
TERS. -RETURN TO PANAMA. - ALMAGRO'S EXPEDITION.
1524-    1525.
FRANCISCO PIZARRO was born at Truxillo, a city
of Estremadura, in Spain. The period of his birth is
uncertain; but probably it was not far from 1471.1
He was an illegitimate child, and that his parents
should not have taken pains to perpetuate the date
of his birth is not surprising. Few care to make a
1 The few writers who venture posed to have had better means of
to assign the date of Pizarro's information, says he was fifty-four
birth do it in so vague and contra- years of age at the same date of
dictory a manner as to inspire us 1525. (Varones Ilustresdel Nuevo
with but little confidence in their Mundo, (Madrid, 1639,) p. 128.)
accounts. Herrera, it is true, says But at the period of his death he
positively, that he was sixty-three  calls him nearly eighty years old!
years old at the time of his death, (p. 185.)  Taking this latter as a
in 1541.  (Hist. General, dec. 6, round exaggeration for effect in the
lib. 10, cap. 6.) This would carry  particular connection in which it is
back the-date of his birth only to used, and admitting the accuracy
1478. But Garcilasso de la Vega of the former statement, the epoch
affirms that he was more than fifty  of his birth will conform to that
years old in 1525.  (Con. Real., given in the text. This makes
Parte 2, lib. 1, cap. 1.)  This him somewhat late in life to set
would place his birth before 1475. about the conquest of an empire.
Pizarro y Orellana, who, as a kins- But Columbus, when he entered on
man of the Conqueror, may be sup- his career, was still older.




CH. II.]        FRANCISCO PIZARRO.            203
particular record of their transgressions. His father,
Gonzalo Pizarro, was a colonel of infantry, and
served with some distinction in the Italian campaigns under the Great Captain, and afterwards in
the wars of Navarre. His mother, named Francisca
Gonzales, was a person of humble condition in the
town of Truxillo.2
But little is told of Francisco's early years, and
that little not always deserving of credit. According to some, he was deserted by both his parents,
and left as a foundling at the door of one of the
principal churches of the city. It is even said that
he would have perished, had he not been nursed by
a sow.3  This is a more discreditable fountain of
supply than that assigned to the infant Romulus.
The early history of men who have made their
names famous by deeds in after-life, like the early
history of nations, affords a fruitful field for invention.
It seems certain that the young Pizarro received
little care from either of his parents, and was suffered to grow up as nature dictated. He was neither taught to read nor write, and his principal
occupation was that of a swineherd. But this torpid
way of life did not suit the stirring spirit of Pizarro,
as he grew older, and listened to the tales, widely
2 Xerez, Conquista del Peru, ronlo a la puerta de la Iglesia,
ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 179. -  mamo una Puerca ciertos Dias, no
Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. se hallando quien le quisiese dar
1.-Pizarro y Orellana, Varones leche." Gomara, Hist. de las
llustres, p. 128.        Ind., cap. 144.
3 "Nacio en Truxillo, i echa



204             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [Boo II.
circulated and so captivating to a youthful fancy, of
the New World.    He shared in the popular enthusiasm, and availed himself of a favorable moment to
abandon his ignoble charge, and escape to Seville,
the port where the Spanish adventurers embarked to
seek their fortunes in the West. Few of them could
have turned their backs on their native land with
less cause for regret than Pizarro.4
In what year this important change in his destiny
took place we are not informed. The first we hear
of him in the New World is at the island of Hispaniola, in 1510, where he took part in the expedition tQ Uraba in Terra Firma, under Alonzo de
Ojeda, a cavalier whose character and achievements
find no parallel but in the pages of Cervantes. Hernando Cortes, whose mother was a Pizarro, and
related, it is said, to the father of Francis, was then
in St. Domingo, and prepared to accompany Ojeda's
expedition, but was prevented by a temporary lameness. Had he gone, the fall of the Aztec empire
might have been postponed for some time longer, and
the sceptre of Montezuma have descended in peace
to his posterity. Pizarro shared in the disastrous
fortunes of Ojeda's colony, and, by his discretion,
obtained so far the confidence of his commander, as
to be left in charge of the settlement, when the
4 According to the Comendador other illustrious discoverers, in the
Pizarro y Orellana, Francis Pizarro New World, whose successes the
served, while quite a stripling, with author modestly attributes to his
his father, in the Italian wars; and kinsman's valor, as a principal
afterwards, under Columbus and cause! Varones lustres, p. 187.




CH. II.1       HIS EARLY HISTORY.          205
latter returned for supplies to the islands.  The
lieutenant continued at his perilous post for nearly
two months, waiting deliberately until death should
have thinned off the colony sufficiently to allow the
miserable remnant to be embarked in the single
small vessel that remained to it.5
After this, we find him associated with Balboa,
the discoverer of the Pacific, and cooperating with
him in establishing the settlement at Darien. He
had the glory of accompanying this gallant cavalier
in his terrible march across the mountains, and of
being among the first Europeans, therefore, whose
eyes were greeted with the long-promised vision of
the Southern Ocean.
After the untimely death of his commander, Pizarro attached himself to the fortunes of Pedrarias,
and was employed by that governor in several military expeditions, which, if they afforded nothing
else, gave him the requisite training for the perils
and privations that lay in the path of the future
Conqueror of Peru.
In 1515, he was selected, with another cavalier
named Morales, to cross the Isthmus and traffic
with the natives on the shores of the Pacific. And
there, while engaged in collecting his booty of gold
and pearls from the neighbouring islands, as his eye
ranged along the shadowy line of coast till it faded
in the distance, his imagination may have been first
5 Pizarro y Orellana, Varones -Montesinos, Annales, MS., ail*
Ilustres, pp. 121, 128. -Herrera, 1510.
Hist. Gen., dec. 1, lib. 7, cap. 14.




206              DISCOVERY OF PERU.            [BOOK II
fired with the idea of, one day, attempting the conquest of the mysterious regions beyond the mountains. On the removal of the seat of government
across the Isthmus to Panama, Pizarro accompanied
Pedrarias, and his name became conspicuous among
the cavaliers who extended the line of conquest to
the north over the martial tribes of Veragua. But
all these expeditions, whatever glory they may have
brought him, were productive of very little gold;
and, at the age of fifty, the captain Pizarro found
himself in possession only of a tract of unhealthy
land in the neigbourhood of the capital, and of such
repartimientos of the natives as were deemed suited
to his military services.6  The New     World was a
lottery, where the great prizes were so few that the
odds were much against the player; yet in the
game he was content to stake health, fortune, and,
too often, his fair fame.
Such was Pizarro's situation when, in 1522, Andagoya returned from his unfinished enterprise to
the south of Panama, bringing back with him more
copious accounts than any hitherto received of the
opulence and grandeur of the countries that lay beyond.7   It was at this time, too, that the splendid
6 " Teniendo su casa, i Hacien- accounts of the empire of the Incas,
da, i Repartimiento de Indios como from certain itinerant traders who
uno de los Principales de la Tierra; frequented that country.  " En
porque siempre lo fue." Xerez, esta provincia supe yhube relacion,
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. ansi de los sefores como de merIII. p. 79.                 caderes 6 interpretes que ellos te
7 Andagoya says that he ob- nian, de toda la costa de todo lo
tained, while at Biri, very minute que despues se ha visto hasta el




CH. II.]  FIRST EXPEDITION TO THE SOUTH.   207
achievements of Cortes made their impression on
the public mind, and gave a new impulse to the
spirit of adventure. The southern expeditions became a common topic of speculation among the
colonists of Panama. But the region of gold, as it
lay behind the mighty curtain of the Cordilleras,
was still veiled in obscurity. No idea could be
formed of its actual distance; and the hardships
and difficulties encountered by the few navigators
who had sailed in that direction gave a gloomy
character to the undertaking, which had hitherto
deterred the most daring from embarking in it.
There is no evidence that Pizarro showed any particular alacrity in the cause. Nor were his own
funds such as to warrant any expectation of success
without great assistance from others. He found
this in two individuals of the colony, who took too
important a part in the subsequent transactions not
to be particularly noticed.
One of them, Diego de Almagro, was a soldier
of fortune, somewhat older, it seems probable, than
Pizarro; though little is known of his birth, and
even the place of it is disputed. It is supposed to
have been the town of Almagro in New Castile,
whence his own name, for want of a better source,
was derived; for, like Pizarro, he was a foundling.8 Few particulars are known of him till the
Cuzco, particularmente de cada varrete, Coleccion, tom. III. No
provincia la manera y gente della, 7.
porque estos alcanzaban por via de  8 "c Decia el que hera de Almamercaduria mucha tierra." Na- gro," says Pedro Pizarro, who




208              DISCOVERY OF PERU.            [BooK II.
present period of our history; for he was one of
those whom the working of turbulent times first
throws upon the surface, - less fortunate, perhaps,
than if left in their original obscurity. In his military career, Almagro had earned the reputation of a
gallant soldier. He was frank and liberal in his
disposition, somewhat hasty and ungovernable in his
passions, but, like men of a sanguine temperament,
after the first sallies had passed away, not difficult
to be appeased. He had, in short, the good qualities and the defects incident to an honest nature,
not improved by the discipline of early education or
self-control.
The other member of the confederacy was Hernando de Luque, a Spanish ecclesiastic, who exercised the functions of vicar at Panama, and had
formerly filled the office of schoolmaster in the Cathedral of Darien. He seems to have been a man
of singular prudence and knowledge of the world;
and by his respectable qualities had acquired considerable influence in the little community to which
he belonged, as well as the control of funds, which
made his cooperation essential to the success of the
present enterprise.
It was arranged among the three associates, that
knew him  well.  Relacion del  The last writer admits that
Descubrimiento y Conquista de los Almagro's parentage is unknown;
Reynos del Peru, MS. —See also but adds that the character of his
Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. early exploits infers an illustrious
1.- Gomara, Hist. de las Ind., descent. -This would scarcely pass
cap. 141. —Pizarro y Orellana, for evidence with the College of
Varones Ilustres, p. 211.   Heralds.




CH. II.1    FIRST EXPEDITION     TO THE SOUTH.           209
the two cavaliers should contribute their little
stock towards defraying the expenses of the armament, but by far the greater part of the funds was
to be furnished by Luque. Pizarro was to take
command of the        expedition, and      the  business of
victualling and equipping the vessels was assigned
to Almagro.      The   associates found     no difficulty in
obtaining the consent of the governor to their undertaking. After the return of Andagoya, he had projected another expedition, but the officer to whom
it was to be intrusted died. Why he did not prosecute his original purpose, and commit the affair to
an experienced captain like Pizarro, does not appear. He was probably not displeased that the
burden of the enterprise should be "borne by others,
so long as a good share of the profits went into his
own coffers. This he did not overlook in his stipulations.9
Thus fortified with the funds of Luque, and the
consent of the governor, Almagro was not slow to
9 "L Asi que estos tres compafie- nieron en ello por aver esta licencia
ros ya dichos Acordaron de yr a porque de otra manera no la alcanconquistar esta provincia ya dicha. zaran." (Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
Pues consultandolo con Pedro Arias Conq., MS.) Andagoya, however,
de Avila que a la sazon hera gover- affirms that the governor was innador en tierra firme. Vino en  terested equally with the other
ello haziendo compania con los associates in the adventure, each
dichos compaiieros con condicion taking a fourth part on himself.
que Pedro Arias no havia de con- (Navarrete, Coleccion, tom. III.
tribuir entonces con ningun dinero No. 7.) But whatever was the
ni otra cosa sino de lo que se hallase original interest of Pedrarias, it
en la tierra de lo que a el le cupiese mattered little, as it was surrenpor virtud de la compariia de alli se dered before any profits were realpagasen los gastos que a el le cu- ized from the expedition.
piesen. Los tres compafieros viVOL. 1.             27




210              DISCOVERY OF PERU.           [BooK I.
make preparations for the voyage. Two small vessels were purchased, the larger of which had been
originally built by Balboa, for himself, with a view
to this same expedition.    Since his death, it had
lain dismantled in the harbour of Panama. It was
now refitted as well as circumstances would permit,
and put in order for sea, while the stores and provisions were got on board with an alacrity which did
more credit, as the event proved, to Almagro's zeal
than to his forecast.
There was more difficulty in obtaining the necessary complement of hands; for a general feeling of
distrust had gathered round expeditions in this direction, which could not readily be overcome. But
there were many idle hangers-on in the colony, who
had come out to mend their fortunes, and were
willing to take their chance of doing so, however
desperate. From such materials as these, Almagro
assembled a body of somewhat more than a hundred men; 0 and every thing being ready, Pizarro
assumed the command, and, weighing anchor, took
his departure from the little port of Panama, about
the middle of November, 1524. Almagro was to
follow in a second vessel of inferior size, as soon as
it could be fitted out."1
10 Herrera, the most popular temporary, and resident at Lima
historian of these transactions, es- even allows a hundred and twentytimates the number of Pizarro's nine. Relacion sumaria de la enfollowers only at eighty. But trada de los Espafoles en el Peru,
every other authority which I have MS.
consulted raises them to over a  11 There is the usual discrepancy
hundred. Father Naharro, a con- among authors about the date of




CH. Il.]  FIRST EXPEDITION TO THE SOUTH.          211
The time of year was the most unsuitable that
could have been    selected for the voyage; for it
was the rainy season, when the navigation to the
south, impeded by contrary winds, is made doubly
dangerous by the tempests that sweep over the
coast. But this was not understood by the adventurers. After touching at the Isle of Pearls, the
frequent resort of navigators, at a few leagues' dis
tance from Panam,, Pizarro held his way across the
Gulf of St. Michael, and steered almost due south
for the Puerto de Pinas, a headland in the province
of Biruquete, which marked the limit of Andagoya's
voyage. Before his departure, Pizarro had obtained
all the information which he could derive from that
officer in respect to the country, and the route he
was to follow. But the cavalier's own experience
had been too limited to enable him to be of much
assistance.
Doubling the Puerto de Piiias, the little vessel
entered the river Biru, the misapplication of which
name is supposed by some to have given rise to
that of the empire of the Incas.'2    After sailing up
this stream for a couple of leagues, Pizarro came to
this expedition. Most fix it at by Pizarro's Capituladon with the
1525. I have conformed to Xerez, Crown, which I had not examined
Pizarro's secretary, whose narrative till after the above was written.
was published ten years after the This instrument, dated July, 1529,
voyage, and who could hardly have speaks of his first expedition as
forgotten the date of so memorable having taken place about five years
an event, in so short an interval of previous. (See Appendix, No. VII.)
time. (See his Conquista del Peru,  12 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1,
ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 179.)  cap. 1.- Herrera, Hist. General.
The year seems to be settled dec. 3, lib. 6, cap. 13.




212           DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [BOOK II.
anchor, and disembarking his whole force except the
sailors, proceeded at the head of it to explore the
country. The land spread out into a vast swamp,
where the heavy rains had settled in pools of stagnant water, and the muddy soil afforded no footing to the traveller. This dismal morass was fringed with woods, through whose thick and tangled
undergrowth they found it difficult to penetrate; and
emerging from them, they came out on a hilly coun
try, so rough and rocky in its character, that their
feet were cut to the bone, and the weary soldier,
encumbered with his heavy mail or thick-padded
doublet of cotton, found it difficult to drag one foot
after the other. The heat at times was oppressive;
and, fainting with toil and famished for want of food,
they sank down on the earth from mere exhaustion.
Such was the ominous commencement of the expedition to Peru.
Pizarro, however, did not lose heart. He en
deavoured to revive the spirits of his men, and besought them not to be discouraged by difficulties
which a brave heart would be sure to overcome, reminding them of the golden prize which awaited
those who persevered. Yet it was obvious that
nothing was to be gained by remaining longer in this
desolate region.  Returning to their vessel, therefore, it was suffered to drop down the river and
proceed along its southern course on the great ocean.
After coasting a few leagues, Pizarro anchored
off a place not very inviting in its appearance, where
he took in a supply of wood and water. Then,




CH. II.]  DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS.     213
stretching more towards the open sea, he held on in
the same direction towards the south. But in this
he was baffled by a succession of heavy tempests,
accompanied with such tremendous peals of thunder
and floods of rain as are found only in the terrible
storms of the tropics. The sea was lashed into
fury, and, swelling into mountain billows, threatened
every moment to overwhelm the crazy little bark,
which opened at every seam. For ten days the unfortunate voyagers were tossed about by the pitiless
elements, and it was only by incessant exertions -
the exertions of despair - that they preserved the
ship from foundering. To add to their calamities,
their provisions began to fail, and they were short of
water, of which they had been furnished only with
a small number of casks; for Almagro had counted
on their recruiting their scanty supplies, from time
to time, from the shore. Their meat was wholly
consumed, and they were reduced to the wretched
allowance of two ears of Indian corn a day for each
man.
Thus harassed by hunger and the elements, the
battered voyagers were too happy to retrace their
course and regain the port where they had last
taken in supplies of wood and water. Yet nothing
could be more unpromising than the aspect of the
country. It had the same character of low, swampy
soil, that distinguished the former landing-place;
while thick-matted forests, of a depth which the
eye could not penetrate, stretched along the coast to
an interminable length. It was in vain that the




214             DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOK II.
wearied Spaniards endeavoured to thread the mazes
of this tangled thicket, where the creepers and flowering vines, that shoot up luxuriant in a hot and
humid atmosphere, had twined themselves round
the huge trunks of the forest-trees, and made a network that could be opened only with the axe. The
rain, in the mean time, rarely slackened, and the
ground, strewed with leaves and saturated with
moisture, seemed to slip away beneath their feet.
Nothing could be more dreary and disheartening
than the aspect of these funereal forests; where the
exhalations from the overcharged surface of the
ground poisoned the air, and seemed to allow no
life, except that, indeed, of myriads of insects,
whose enamelled wings glanced to and fro, like
sparks of fire, in every opening of the woods. Even
the brute creation appeared instinctively to have
shunned the fatal spot, and neither beast nor bird
of any description was seen by the wanderers. Silence reigned unbroken in the heart of these dismal
solitudes; at least, the only sounds that could be
heard were the plashing of the rain-drops on the
leaves, and the tread of the forlorn adventurers.'3
Entirely discouraged by the aspect of the country,
the Spaniards began to comprehend that they had
gained nothing by changing their quarters from sea
to shore, and they felt the most serious apprehen13 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. lib. 1, cap. 1.-Garcilasso, Com.
Barcia, tom. HII. p. 180.-Rela- Real., Parte 2, lib. 1, cap. 7.cion del Primer. Descub., MS. -  Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3.
Montesinos, Annales, MS., aifo lib. 6, cap. 13.
1515. - Zarate, Conq. del Peru,




cH. II.]  DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS.      215
sions of perishing from famine in a region which
afforded nothing but such unwholesome berries as\
they could pick up here and there in the woods.
They loudly complained of their hard lot, accusing their commander as the author of all their troubles, and as deluding them with promises of a fairy
land, which seemed to recede in proportion as they
advanced. It was of no use, they said, to contend against fate, and it was better to take their
chance of regaining the port of Panama in time to
save their lives, than to wait where they were to die
of hunger.
But Pizarro was prepared to encounter much
greater evils than these, before returning to Panama, bankrupt in credit, an object of derision as a
vainglorious dreamer, who had persuaded others to
embark in an adventure which he had not the courage to carry through himself. The present was his
only chance. To return would be ruin. He used
every argument, therefore, that mortified pride or
avarice could suggest to turn his followers from their
purpose; represented to them that these were the
troubles that necessarily lay in the path of the discoverer; and called to mind the brilliant successes
of their countrymen in other quarters, and the repeated reports, which they had themselves received,
of the rich regions along this coast, of which it
required only courage and constancy on their part to
become the masters. Yet, as their present exigencies
were pressing, he resolved to send back the vessel
to the Isle of Pearls, to lay in a fresh stock of pro



216           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BooK 11.
visions for his company, which might enable them
to go forward with renewed confidence. The distance was not great, and in a few days they would
all be relieved from their perilous position.  Tht
officer detached on this service was named Montenegro; and taking with him nearly half the company, after receiving Pizarro's directions, he instantly weighed anchor, and steered for the Isle of Pearls.
On the departure of his vessel, the Spanish commander made an attempt to explore the country,
and see if some Indian settlement might not be
found, where he could procure refreshments for
his followers.  But his efforts were vain, and no
trace was visible of a human dwelling; though, in
the dense and impenetrable foliage of the equatorial
regions, the distance of a few rods might suffice
to screen a city from observation. The only means
of nourishment left to the unfortunate adventurers
were such shell-fish as they occasionally picked
up on the shore, or the bitter buds of the palmtree, and such berries and unsavoury herbs as grew
wild in the woods. Some of these were so poisonous, that the bodies of those who ate them swelled
up and were tormented with racking pains. Others,
preferring famine to this miserable diet, pined away
from weakness and actually died of starvation. Yet
their resolute leader strove to maintain his own
cheerfulness and to keep up the drooping spirits of
his men.  He freely shared with them his scanty
stock of provisions, was unwearied in his endeavours
to procure them sustenance, tended the sick, and




CH. II.]  DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS.     217
ordered barracks to be constructed for their accommodation, which might, at least, shelter them from
the drenching storms of the season. By this ready
sympathy with his followers in their sufferings, he
obtained an ascendency over their rough natures,
which the assertion of authority, at least in the present extremity, could never have secured to him.
Day after day, week after week, had now passed
away, and no tidings werp heard of the vessel that
was to bring relief to the wanderers. In vain did
they strain their eyes over the distant waters to
catch a glimpse of their coming friends. Not a
speck was to be seen in the blue distance, where
the canoe of the savage dared not venture, and the
sail of the white man was not yet spread. Those
who had borne up bravely at first now gave way to
despondency, as they felt themselves abandoned by
their countrymen on this desolate shore.  They
pined under that sad feeling which "maketh the
heart sick." More than twenty of the little band
had already died, and the survivors seemed to be
rapidly following.'4
At this crisis reports were brought to Pizarro of a
light having been seen through a distant opening in
the woods. He hailed the tidings with eagerness,
as intimating the existence of some settlement in
the neighbourhood; and, putting himself at the head
of a small party, went in the direction pointed out,
to reconnoitre. He was not disappointed, and, after
14 Ibid., ubi supra.- Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.-Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ubi supra.
VOL. I.        28




218            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOx I1.
extricating himself from a dense wilderness of underbrush and foliage, he emerged into an open
space, where a small Indian village was planted.
The timid inhabitants, on the sudden apparition of
the strangers, quitted their huts in dismay; and the
famished Spaniards, rushing in, eagerly made themselves masters of their contents. These consisted
of different articles of food, chiefly maize and cocoanuts.  The supply, though small, was too seasonable not to fill them with rapture.
The astonished natives made no attempt at resistance. But, gathering more confidence as no violence was offered to their persons, they drew nearer
the white men, and inquired, "Why they did not
stay at home and till their own lands, instead of
roaming about to rob others who had never harmed
them? " 5  Whatever may have been their opinion
as to the question of right, the Spaniards, no doubt,
felt then that it would have been wiser to do so.
But the savages wore about their persons gold ornaments of some size, though of clumsy workmanship. This furnished the best reply to their demand.   It was the golden bait which lured the
Spanish adventurer to forsake his pleasant home for
the trials of the wilderness.  From  the Indians
Pizarro gathered a confirmation of the reports he
had so often received of a rich country lying farther
south; and at the distance of ten days' journey
15 Porque decian a los Cas- los Bastimentos agenos, pasando
tellanos, que por qud no sembra- tantos trabajos." Herrera, Hist
ban. i cogian, sin andar tomando General, loc. cit.




CH. II.]    DISTRESSES OF THE VOYAGERS.             219
across the mountains, they told him, there dwelt a
mighty monarch whose dominions had been invaded by another still more powerful, the Child of the
Sun.'6   It may have been the invasion of Quito
that was meant, by the valiant Inca Huayna Capac,
which took place some years previous to Pizarro's
expedition.
At length, after the expiration of more than six
weeks, the Spaniards beheld with delight the return
of the wandering bark that had borne away theii
comrades, and Montenegro sailed into port with an
ample supply of provisions for his famishing countrymen. Great was his horror at the aspect presented by the latter, their wild and haggard countenances and wasted frames, - so wasted by hunger and disease, that their old companions found
it difficult to recognize them. Montenegro accounted for his delay by incessant head winds and bad
weather; and he himself had also a doleful tale to
tell of the distress to which he and his crew had
been reduced by hunger, on their passage to the
Isle of Pearls.- It is minute incidents like these
16 ", Dioles noticia el viejo por But the particulars of this revolumedio del lengua, como diez soles tion, its time or precise theatre
de alli habia un Rey muy poderoso were, probably, but very vaguely
yendo por espesas montafias, y que comprehended by the rude nations
otro mas poderoso hijo del sol ha- in the neighbourhood of Panama;
bia venido de milagro a quitarle el and their allusion to it in an unReino sobre que tenian mui san- known dialect was as little compregrientas batallas." (Montesinos, hended by the Spanish voyagers,
Annales,MS.,ano 1525.) The con- who must have collected their inquest of Quito by Huayna Capac formation from signs much more
took place more than thirty years than words.
before this period in our history.




220           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BooK 1I
with which we have been occupied, that enable
one to comprehend the extremity of suffering to
which the Spanish adventurer was subjected in the
prosecution of his great work of discovery.
Revived by the substantial nourishment to which
they had so long been strangers, the Spanish cavaliers, with the buoyancy that belongs to men of a
hazardous and roving life, forgot their past distresses
in their eagerness to prosecute their enterprise. Reembarking therefore on board his vessel, Pizarro
bade adieu to the scene of so much suffering, which
he branded with the appropriate name of Puerto de
la Hambre, the Port of Famine, and again opened
his sails to a favorable breeze that bore him onwards
towards the south.
Had he struck boldly out into the deep, instead
of hugging the inhospitable shore, where he had
hitherto found so little to recompense him, he might
have spared himself the repetition of wearisome and
unprofitable adventures, and reached by a shorter
route the point of his destination. But the Spanish
mariner groped his way along these unknown coasts,
landing at every convenient headland, as if fearful
lest some fruitful region or precious mine might be
overlooked, should a single break occur in the line of
survey. Yet it should be remembered, that, though
the true point of Pizarro's destination is obvious to
us, familiar with the topography of these countries,
he was wandering in the dark, feeling his way
along, inch by inch, as it were, without chart to
guide him, without knowledge of the seas or of the




CH. II.]       SHARP ENCOUNTERS.           221
bearings of the coast, and even with no better defined idea of the object at which he aimed than that
of a land, teeming with gold, that lay somewhere at
the south! It was a hunt after an El Dorado; on
information scarcely more circumstantial or authentic than that which furnished the basis of so many
chimerical enterprises in this land of wonders. Success only, the best argument with the multitude,
redeemed the expeditions of Pizarro from a similar
imputation of extravagance.
Holding on his southerly course under the lee ot
the shore, Pizarro, after a short run, found himself
abreast of an open reach of country, or at least one
less encumbered with wood, which rose by a gradual
swell, as it receded from the coast. He landed
with a small body of men, and, advancing a short
distance into the interior, fell in with an Indian
hamlet. It was abandoned by the inhabitants, who,
on the approach of the invaders, had betaken themselves to the mountains; and the Spaniards, entering
their deserted dwellings, found there a good store
of maize and other articles of food, and rude ornaments of gold of considerable value. Food was not
more necessary for their bodies than was the sight
of gold, from time to time, to stimulate their appetite for adventure. One spectacle, however, chilled
their blood with horror. This was the sight of
human flesh, which they found roasting before the
fire, as the barbarians had left it, preparatory to
their obscene repast.  The Spaniards, conceiving
that they had fallen in with a tribe of Caribs, the




222            DISCOVERY OF PERU.          LBOOK 1I.
only race in that part of the New World known to
be cannibals, retreated precipitately to their vessel.'7 They were not steeled by sad familiarity
with the spectacle, like the Conquerors of Mexico.
The weather, which had been favorable, now set
in tempestuous, with heavy squalls, accompanied by
incessant thunder and lightning, and the rain, as
usual in these tropical tempests, descended not so
much in drops as in unbroken sheets of water.
The Spaniards, however, preferred to take their
chance on the raging element rather than remain in
the scene of such brutal abominations. But the
fury of the storm gradually subsided, and the little
vessel held on her way along the coast, till, coming
abreast of a bold point of land named by Pizarro
Punta Quemada, he gave orders to anchor. The
margin of the shore was fringed with a deep belt of
mangrove-trees, the long roots of which, interlacing
one another, formed a kind of submarine latticework that made the place difficult of approach.
Several avenues, opening through this tangled thicket, led Pizarro to conclude that the country must be
inhabited, and he disembarked, with the greater
part of his force, to explore the interior.
He had not penetrated more than a league, when
he found his conjecture verified by the sight of an
Indian town of larger size than those he had hither17 " I en las Ollas de la comida, cieron, que aquellos Indios eran
que estaban al Fuego, entre la Caribes." Herrera, Hist. General,
Carne, que sacaban, havia Pies i dec. 3, lib. 8, cap. 11.
Manos de Hombres, de donde cono



(u. II.]      SHARP ENCOUNTERS.          223
to seen, occupying the brow of an eminence, and
well defended by palisades. The inhabitants, as
usual, had fled; but left in their dwellings a good
supply of provisions and some gold trinkets, which
the Spaniards made no difficulty of appropriating to
themselves. Pizarro's flimsy bark had been strained by the heavy gales it had of late encountered, so
that it was unsafe to prosecute the voyage further
without more thorough repairs than could be given
to her on this desolate coast. He accordingly determined to send her back with a few hands to be
careened at Panama, and meanwhile to establish his
quarters in his present position, which was so favorable for defence. But first he despatched a small
party under Montenegro to reconnoitre the country,
and, if possible, to open a communication with the
natives.
The latter were a warlike race. They had left
their habitations in order to place their wives and
children in safety. But they had kept an eye on
the movements of the invaders, and, when they saw
their forces divided, they resolved to fall upon each
body singly before it could communicate with the
other. So soon, therefore, as Montenegro had penetrated through the defiles of the lofty hills, which
shoot out like spurs of the Cordilleras along this
part of the coast, the Indian warriors, springing
from their ambush, sent off a cloud of arrows and
other missiles that darkened the air, while they
made the forest ring with their shrill war-whoop.
The Spaniards, astonished at the appearance of the




224           DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [BOOK II.
savages, with their naked bodies gaudily painted,
and brandishing their weapons as they glanced
among the trees and straggling underbrush that
choked up the defile, were taken by surprise and
thrown for a moment into disarray. Three of their
number were killed and several wounded. Yet,
speedily rallying, they returned the discharge of the
assailants with their cross-bows, —for Pizarro's
troops do not seem to have been provided with
muskets on this expedition, —and then gallantly
charging the enemy, sword in hand, succeeded in
driving them back into the fastnesses of the mountains. But it only led them to shift their operations
to another quarter, and make an assault on Pizarro
before he could be relieved by his lieutenant.
Availing themselves of their superior knowledge
of the passes, they reached that commander's quarters long before Montenegro, who had commenced a
countermarch in the same direction. And issuing
from the woods, the bold savages saluted the Spanish garrison with a tempest of darts and arrows,
some of which found their way through the joints of
the harness and the quilted mail of the cavaliers.
But Pizarro was too well practised a soldier to be off
his guard. Calling his men about him, he resolved
not to abide the assault tamely in the works, but to
sally out, and meet the enemy on their own ground.
The barbarians, who had advanced near the defences, fell back as the Spaniards burst forth with
their valiant leader at their head. But, soon returning with admirable ferocity to the charge, they




CH. II.]      RETURN TO PANAMA.            225
singled out Pizarro, whom, by his bold bearing and
air of authority, they easily recognized as the chief;
and, hurling at him a storm of missiles, wounded
him, in spite of his armour, in no less than seven
places."8
Driven back by the fury of the assault directed
against his own person, the Spanish commander retreated down the slope of the hill, still defending
himself as he could with sword and buckler, when
his foot slipped and he fell. The enemy set up
a fierce yell of triumph, and some of the boldest
sprang forward to despatch him. But Pizarro was
on his feet in an instant, and, striking down two of
the foremost with his strong arm, held the rest at
bay till his soldiers could come to the rescue. The
barbarians, struck with admiration at his valor, began to falter, when Montenegro luckily coming on
the ground at the moment, and falling on their rear,
completed their confusion; and, abandoning the field,
they made the best of their way into the recesses of
the mountains. The ground was covered with their
slain; but the victory was dearly purchased by the
death of two more Spaniards and a long list of
wounded.
A council of war was then called. The position
had lost its charm in the eyes of the Spaniards, who
had met here with the first resistance they had yet
experienced on their expedition. It was necessary to
I8 Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 1.MS. - Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Balboa, Hist. du Perou, chap. 15.
Barcia, tom. [II. p. 180.-Zarate,
VOL. I.        29




226            DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BooK 1I.
place the wounded in some secure spot, where their
injuries could be attended to. Yet it was not safe
to proceed farther, in the crippled state of their vessel. On the whole, it was decided to return and
report their proceedings to the governor; and, though
the magnificent hopes of the adventurers had not
been realized, Pizarro trusted that enough had been
done to vindicate the importance of the enterprise,
and to secure the countenance of Pedrarias for the
further prosecution of it.'9
Yet Pizarro could not make up his mind to present himself, in the present state of the undertaking,
before the governor. He determined, therefore, to
be set on shore with the principal part of his com
pany at Chicama, a place on the main land, at a
short distance west of Panama. From this place,
which he reached without any further accident, he
despatched the vessel, and in it his treasurer, Nicolas
de Ribera, with the gold he had collected, and with
instructions to lay before the governor a full account
of his discoveries, and the result of the expedition.
While these events were passing, Pizarro's associate, Almagro, had been busily employed in fitting
out another vessel for the expedition at the port of
Panama. It was not till long after his friend's departure that he was prepared to follow him. With
the assistance of Luque, he at length succeeded in
equipping a small caravel and embarking a body of
between sixty and seventy adventurers, mostly ot
19 Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 8, cap. 11.-Xerez, ubi
supra.




CH. II.]     ALMAGRO'S EXPEDITION.        227
the lowest order of the colonists. He steered in the
track of his comrade, with the intention of overtaking him as soon as possible. By a signal previously concerted of notching the trees, he was able
to identify the spots visited by Pizarro, - Puerto de
Pinas, Puerto de la Hambre, Pueblo Quemado, -
touching successively at every point of the coast
explored by his countrymen, though in a much
shorter time. At the last-mentioned place he was
received by the fierce natives with the same hostile
demonstrations as Pizarro, though in the present encounter the Indians did not venture beyond their
defences. But the hot blood of Almagro was so
exasperated by this check, that he assaulted the
place and carried it sword in hand, setting fire to
the outworks and dwellings, and driving the wretched inhabitants into the forests.
His victory cost him dear. A wound from a javelin on the head caused an inflammation in one of his
eyes, which, after great anguish, ended in the loss of
it. Yet the intrepid adventurer did not hesitate to
pursue his voyage, and, after touching at several
places on the coast, some of which-rewarded him with
a considerable booty in gold, he reached the mouth
of the Rio de San Juan, about the fourth degree of
north latitude. He was struck with the beauty of
the stream, and with the cultivation on its borders,
which were sprinkled with Indian cottages showing
some skill in their construction, and altogether intimating a higher civilization than any thing he had
yet seen.




228             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BooK II
Still his mind was filled with anxiety for the fate
of Pizarro and his followers. No trace of them had
been found on the coast for a long time, and it was
evident they must have foundered at sea, or made
their way back to Panama. This last he deemed
most probable; as the vessel might have passed
him unnoticed under the cover of the night, or of
the dense fogs that sometimes hang over the coast.
Impressed with this belief, he felt no heart to
continue his voyage of discovery, for which, indeed,
his single bark, with its small complement of men,
was altogether inadequate. He proposed, therefore,
to return without delay. On his way, he touched at
the Isle of Pearls, and there learned the result of his
friend's expedition, and the place of his present residence.  Directing his course, at once, to Chicama, the two cavaliers soon had the satisfaction of
embracing each other, and recounting their several
exploits and escapes. Almagro returned even better
freighted with gold than his confederate, and at
every step of his progress he had collected fresh confirmation of the existence of some great and opulent
empire in the South. The confidence of the two
friends was much strengthened by their discoveries;
and they unhesitatingly pledged themselves to one
another to die rather than abandon the enterprise.20
The best means of obtaining the levies requisite
20 Xerez, ubi supra.-Naharro, Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3,
Relacion Sumaria, MS.- Zarate, lib. 8, cap. 13. - Levinus ApolloConq. del Peru, loc. cit. - Balboa, nius, fol. 12. -Gomara, Hist. de
Hist. du Perou, chap. 15.- Re- las Ind., cap. 108.
lacion del Primer. Descub., MS. -




CH. II.]     ALMAGRO'S EXPEDITION.         229
for so formidable an undertaking -more formidable,
as it now appeared to them, than before —were
made the subject of long and serious discussion. It
was at length decided that Pizarro should remain
in his present quarters, inconvenient and even unwholesome as they were rendered by the humidity
of the climate, and the pestilent swarms of insects
that filled the atmosphere.  Almagro would pass
over to Panama, lay the case before the governor,
and secure, if possible, his good-will towards the
prosecution of the enterprise. If no obstacle were
thrown in their way from this quarter, they might
hope, with the assistance of Luque, to raise the
necessary supplies; while the results of the recent
expedition were sufficiently encouraging to draw
adventurers to their standard in a community which
had a craving for excitement that gave even danger
a charm, and which held life cheap in comparison
with gold.




CHAPTER III.
THE FAMOUS CONTRACT. - SECOND EXPEDITION. - RUIZ EXPLORES
THE COAST. PIZARRO'S SUFFERINGS IN THE FORESTS. —ARRIVAL
OF NEW RECRUITS. -FRESH DISCOVERIES AND DISASTERS.-PIZARRO ON THE ISLE OF GALLO.
1526-1527.
ON his arrival at Panama, Almagro found that
events had taken a turn less favorable to his views
than he had anticipated. Pedrarias, the governor,
was preparing to lead an expedition in person against
a rebellious officer in Nicaragua; and his temper,
naturally not the most amiable, was still further
soured by this defection of his lieutenant, and the
necessity it imposed on him of a long and perilous
march.   When, therefore, Almagro appeared before
him with the request that he might be permitted to
raise further levies to prosecute his enterprise, the
governor received him with obvious dissatisfaction,
listened coldly to the narrative of his losses, turned
an incredulous ear to his magnificent promises for
the future, and bluntly demanded an account of the
lives, which had been sacrificed by Pizarro's obsti
nacy, but which, had they been spared, might have
stood him in good stead in his present expedition to




CnI. I.]  ITHE FAMOUS CONTRACT.          2o 
Nicaragua. He positively declined to countenance
the rash schemes of the two adventurers any longer,
and the conquest of Peru would have been crushed
in the bud, butb for the efficient interposition of the
remaining associate, Fernando de Luque.
This sagacious ecclesiastic had received a very
different impression from Almagro's narrative, from
that which had been nade onrhe mind of the irritable govern   1le actual results of the enterprise
in gold and si er, thus far, indetl, had been small,
-forming a mortifying contrast to the magnitude
of their expectations. But, in another point of view,
they were of the last importance; since the intelligence which the adventurers had gained in every
successive stage of their progress confirmed, in the
strongest manner, the previous accounts, received
from Andagoya and others, of a richIndian empire
at the south, -hich might repay the trouble of conquinimg k as well as Mexico had repaid the enter-pTie of Cortes. Fully entering, therefore, into
the qf' gs of his military associates, he used all
his influence with the governor to incline him to
at more favorabl. view' of Almagro's petition; and
noe   in the little commnity of Panama exercised
greaFer influence:der the councils of the executive
than Father Luque, for which he was indebted no
less to his discretion and acknowledged sagacity
than to his professional station.
But while Pedrarias, overcome by the arguments
or importunity of the churchman, yielded a reluctant assent to the application, he fook, care to tes



232            DISCOVERY OF PERU.          [BOOK II
tify his displeasure with Pizarro, on lwhom he parricularly charged the loss of his followers, by naming
Almagoro as his equal in command in the proposed
expedition.  This mortification sunk deep into Pizarro's mind.   He suspected   his comrade, witih
what reason does not appear, of soliciting this boon
from  the governor.,. temporary coldness arose
b!etw-een them, lwhich subsidet, irk oqtward show.
it least, on Pizarro's reflecting  a'y was better
to have this authority conferred on'a friend than
on a stranger, perhaps an enemy.    But the seedctl
of permanent distrust were left in his bosom, and
lay waiting for the due season to ripen into a fruitful harvest of discord.'
Pedrarias had been originally interested in the
enterprise, at least, so far as to stipulate for a
share of the gains, though he had not contributed
Is it appears, a single ducat towards the expen.
ses.  He was at length, however, induced to rclnlquish all right to a share of the contingent p'rots.
But, in his manner of doing so, he showed,. mer-,eenary spirit, better becoming a petty trader than
a high officer of the Crown.   He. stipulated tAt
the associates should secure to him  the suiE of
one thousand pesos de oro in reuital of his goodwill, and they eagerly closed with his proposal,
rather than be encumbered with his pretensions.
For so paltry a consideration did he resign his por1 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. -Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3,
Barcia, tom. III. p. 180. —Mon- lib. 8, cap. 12.
tesinos, Annales, MS., ano 1526.




UH. 111.]         THE FAMOUS CONTRACT.                      233
tion of the ricn spoil of the Incas!2           But the governor was not gifted with the eye of a prophet.
His avarice     was of that short-sighted         kind   which
defeats itself. * He had sacrificed the chivalrous
Balboa just as that officer was opening to him the
conquest of Peru, and he would now have quenched
the spirit of enterprise, that was taking the same direction, in Pizarro and his associates.
Not long      after this, in    the   following    year, he
was succeeded in his government by Don Pedro
de   los Rios, a cavalier of Cordova.             It was     the
policy of the Castilian Crown to allow no one of
the great colonial officers to occupy the same station so long as to render himself formidable by his
authority.3     It had, moreover, many particular causes
of disgust with      Pedrarias.      The    functionary    they
2 Such is Oviedo's account, who  el dicho Pedrarias de Avila les
was present at the interview be- dijo, que ya el no queria mas hacer
tween the governor and Almagro, compaiia con ellos en los gastos
when the terms of compensation   de la armada, que si ellos querian
were discussed.   The dialogue, volver a su costa, que lo hiciesen;
which is amusing enough, and well y ansi como gente que habia pertold by the old Chronicler, may be  dido todo lo que tenia y tanto habia
found translated in Appendix, No. trabajado, acordaron de tornar a
5. Another version of the affair proseguir su jornada y dar fin a las
is given in the Relacion, often  vidas y haciendas que les quedaba,
quoted by me, of one of the Peru- 6 descubrir aquella tierra, y ciertavian conquerors, in which Pedra- mente ellos tubieron grande conrias is said to have gone out of the  stancia y animo."  Relacion del
partnership voluntarily, from  his Primer. Descub., MS.
disgust at the unpromising state of  3 This policy is noticed by the
affairs. " Vueltos con la dicha sagacious Martyr. "De mutandis
gente a Panama, destrozados y    namque plaerisque gubernatoribus,
gastados que ya no tenian hacien- ne longa nimis imperii assuetudine
das para tornar con provisiones y  insolescant, cogitatur, qui praecipue
gentes que todo lo habian gastado, non fuerint prouinciarum domitores,
VOL. I.              30




234              DISCOVERY OF PERU.            [BOOK II.
sent out to succeed him was fortified with ample
instructions for the good of the colony, and especially of the natives, whose religious conversion
was urged as a capital object, and whose personal
freedom was unequivocally asserted, as loyal vassals
of the Crown.      It is but justice to the Spanish
government to admit that its provisions were generally guided by a humane and considerate policy, which was as regularly frustrated by the cupidity of the colonist, and the capricious cruelty
of the conqueror.      The few    remaining   years of
Pedrarias were spent in petty squabbles, both of a
personal and official nature; for he was still continued in office, though in one of less consideration
than that which he had hitherto filled. He survived
but a few years, leaving behind him a reputation
not to be envied, of one who united a pusillanimous
spirit with uncontrollable passions; who displayed,
notwithstanding, a certain energy of character, or,
to speak more correctly, an impetuosity of purpose,
which might have led to good results had it taken
a right direction. Unfortunately, his lack of discretion was such, that the direction he took was rarely
of service to his country or to himself.
Having settled their difficulties with the governor,
de hisce ducibus namque alia ratio World, should have died before.
ponderatur."  (De Orbe Novo, the empire of the Incas was dis(Parisiis, 1587,) p. 498.) One can- closed to Europeans. He lived to
not but regret that the philosopher, learn and to record the wonders of
who took so keen an interest in  "Rich Mexico, the seat of Montezuma;
the successive revelations of the  Not Cuzco in Peru, the richer seat of
different portions of the New   Atabalipa."




CH. III.]      THE FAMOUS CONTRACT.              235
and obtained his sanction to their enterprise, the
confederates lost no time in making the requisite
preparations for it.  Their first step was to execute
the memorable contract which served as the basis
of their future arrangements; and, as Pizarro's name
appears in this, it seems probable that that chief had
crossed over to Panama so soon as the favorable
disposition of Pedrarias had been secured.4      The
instrument, after invoking in the most solemn manner the names of the Holy Trinity and Our Lady
the Blessed Virgin, sets forth, that, whereas the parties have full authority to discover and subdue the
countries and provinces lying south of the Gulf,
belonging to the empire of Peru, and as Fernando
de Luque had advanced the funds for the enterprise in bars of gold of the value of twenty thousand pesos, they mutually bind themselves to divide equally among them the whole of the conquered territory.   This stipulation is reiterated   over
and over again, particularly with reference to Luque, who, it is declared, is to be entitled to one
third of all lands, repartimientos, treasures of every
kind, gold, silver, and precious stones,- to one
third  even of all vassals, rents, and emoluments
arising from such grants as may be conferred by the
Crown on either of his military associates, to be
4 In opposition to most authori- of the first, expedition.  This
ties, —but not to the judicious arrangement coincides with the
Quintana, - I have conformed to date of the instrument itself, which,
Montesinos, in placing the execu- moreover, is reported in extenso by
tion of the contract at the com- no ancient writer whom I have
mencement of the second, instead consulted except Montesinos.




236            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BooK II.
held for his own use, or for that of his heirs, assigns,
or legal representative.
The two captains solemnly engage to devote
themselves exclusively to the present undertaking
until it is accomplished; and, in case of failure in
their part ol the covenant, they pledge themselves
to reimburse Luque for his advances, for which all
the property they possess shall be held responsible, and this declaration is to be a sufficient warrant for the execution of judgment against them, in
the same manner as if it had proceeded from the
decree of a court of justice.
The commanders, Pizarro and Almagro, made
oath, in the name of God and the Holy Evangelists,
sacredly to keep this covenant, swearing it on the
missal, on which they traced with their own hands
the sacred emblem   of the cross.  To give still
greater efficacy to the compact, Father Luque administered the sacrament to the parties, dividing
the consecrated wafer into three portions, of which
each one of them partook; while the by-standers,
says an historian, were affected to tears by this
spectacle of the solemn ceremonial with which these
men voluntarily devoted themselves to a sacrifice
that seemed little short of insanity.5
The instrument, which was dated March 10,
1526, was subscribed by Luque, and attested by
three respectable citizens of Panama, one of whom
5 This singular instrument is may be found in the original ip
given at length by Montesinos. Appendix, No. 6.
(Annales, MS., ano 1526.) It




CH. III.]      THE FAMOUS CONTRACT.             237
signed on behalf of Pizarro, and the other for Almagro; since neither of these parties, according to
the avowal of the instrument, was able to subscribe
his own name.6
Such was the singular compact by which three
obscure individuals coolly carved out and partitioned
among themselves, an empire of whose extent,
power, and resources, of whose situation, of whose
existence, even, they had no sure or precise knowledge. The positive and unhesitating manner in
which they speak of the grandeur of this empire.
of its stores of wealth, so conformable to the event,
but of which they could have really known so little,
forms a striking contrast with the general skepticism and indifference manifested by nearly every
other person, high and low, in the community of
Panama.7
The religious tone of the instrument is not the
least remarkable feature in it, especially when we
contrast this with the relentless policy, pursued by
the very men who were parties to it, in their conquest of the country.   " In the name of the Prince
of Peace," says the illustrious historian of America,
"they ratified a contract of which plunder and
6 For some investigation of the exertions in behalf of the enterfact, which has been disputed by prise; Padre Luque 6 loco, says
more than one, of Pizarro's igno- Oviedo of him, as if it were syrance of the art of writing, see nonymous. Historia de las Indias
Book 4, chap. 5, of this History. Islas e Tierra Firme del Mar
7 The epithet of loco or " mad- Oceano, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8
man" was punningly bestowed cap. 1.
on Father Luque, for his spirited




238             DISCOVERY OF PERU.          [BooK II.
bloodshed were the objects."8 The reflection seems
reasonable. Yet, in criticizing what is done, as well
as what is written, we must take into account the
spirit of the times.9 The invocation of Heaven
was natural, where the object of the undertaking
was, in part, a religious one.    Religion entered,
more or less, into the theory, at least, of the Spanish conquests in the New     World.    That motives
of a baser sort mingled largely with these higher
ones, and in different proportions according to the
character of the individual, no one will deny. And
few are they that have proposed to themselves a
long career of action without the intermixture of
some vulgar personal motive,-fame, honors, or
emolument. Yet that religion furnishes a key to the
American crusades, however rudely they may have
been conducted, is evident from the history of their
origin; from the sanction openly given to them by
the Head of the Church; from the throng of self-devoted missionaries, who followed in the track of the
conquerors to garner up the rich harvest of souls;
from the reiterated instructions of the Crown, the
great object of which was the conversion of the natives; from those superstitious acts of the iron-hearted soldiery themselves, which, however they may be
set down to fanaticism, were clearly too much in
8 Robertson, America, vol. III. fair criticism will apply the same
p. 5.                     rule to action as to writing, and,
9 "A perfect judge will read each work in the moral estimate of conduct,
of wit               will ta
With the same spirit that its author ill take largely into account the
writ,"              spirit of the age which promptsays the great bard of Reason. A  ed it.




CH. III.]      THE FAMOUS CONTRACT.              239
earnest to leave any ground for the charge of hypocrisy. It was indeed a fiery cross that was borne
over the devoted land, scathing and consuming it in
its terrible progress; but it was still the cross, the
sign of man's salvation, the only sign by which
generations and generations yet unborn were to be
rescued from eternal perdition.
It is a remarkable fact, which has hitherto escaped the notice of the historian, that Luque was
not the real party to this contract.  He represented
another, who placed in his hands the funds required
for the undertaking. This appears from an instrument signed by Luque himself and certified before
the same notary that prepared the original contract.
The instrument declares that the whole sum of
twenty thousand pesos advanced for the expedition
was furnished by the Licentiate Gaspar de Espinosa, then at Panama; that the vicar acted only as
his agent and by his authority; and that, in consequence, the said Espinosa and no other was entitled
to a third of all the profits and acquisitions resulting
from the conquest of Peru. This instrument, attested by three persons, one of them the same who
had witnessed the original contract, was dated on
the 6th of August, 1531.10 The Licentiate Espi10 The instrument making this formerly preserved in the library
extraordinary disclosure is cited of the great college of Cuenia at
at length in a manuscript en- Salamanca, is now to be found in
titled Noticia General del Peru, her Majesty's library at Madrid.
Tierra Firme y Chili, by Francisco The passage is extracted by QuinLopez de Caravantes, a fiscal offi- tana, Espafoles Celebres, tom. 11
cer in these colonies. The MS., Apend. No. 2, nota.




240           DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOK II.
nosa was a respectable functionary, who had filled
the office of principal alcalde in Darien, and since
taken a conspicuous part in the conquest and settlement of Tierra Firme. He enjoyed much ccasideration for his personal character and station; and it
is remarkable that so little should be known of the
manner in which the covenant, so solemnly made,
was executed in reference to him. As in the case
of Columbus, it is probable that the unexpected
magnitude of the results was such as to prevent a
faithful adherence to the original stipulation; and
yet, from the same consideration, one can hardly
doubt that the twenty thousand pesos of the bold
speculator must have brought him a magnificent
return. Nor did the worthy vicar of Panama, as
the history will show hereafter, go without his reward.
Having completed these preliminary arrangements, the three associates lost no time in making
preparations for the voyage.  Two vessels were
purchased, larger and every way better than those
employed on the former occasion. Stores were laid
in, as experience dictated, on a larger scale than
before, and proclamation was made of "an expedition to Peru." But the call was not readily answered by the skeptical citizens of Panama. Of
nearly two hundred men who had embarked on the
former cruise, not more than three fourths now remained.11 This dismal mortality, and the emaciated,
11 " Con ciento i diez Hombres el Capitan Piearro con otros cinsali de Panam&, i fuedondeestaba quenta de los primeros ciento i




CE. III.]     SECOND EXPEDITION.          241
poverty-stricken aspect of the survivors, spoke more
eloquently than the braggart promises and magnificent prospects held out by the adventurers. Still
there were men in the community of such desperate
circumstances, that any change seemed like a chance
of bettering their condition. Most of the former
company also, strange to say, felt more pleased to
follow up the adventure to the end than to abandon
it, as they saw the light of a better day dawning
upon them. From these sources the two captains
succeeded in mustering about one hundred and sixty
men, making altogether a very inadequate force for
the conquest of an empire. A few horses were also
purchased, and a better supply of ammunition and
military stores than before, though still on a very
limited scale. Considering their funds, the only
way of accounting for this must be by the difficulty
of obtaining supplies at Panama, which, recently
founded, and on the remote coast of the Pacific,
could be approached only by crossing the rugged
barrier of mountains, which made the transportation
of bulky articles extremely difficult.  Even such
scanty stock of materials as it possessed was probably laid under heavy contribution, at the present
juncture, by the governor's preparations for his own
expedition to the north.
Thus indifferently provided, the two captains,
each in his own vessel, again took their departure
diez, quecon e1 salieron, i de los  loseiento i treinta iaeranmuertos.'"
setenta, que el Capitan Almagro Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia,
levo, quando le fue a buscar, que tor. III. p. 180.
VOL. I.        31




242            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BooK II
from Panama, under the direction of Bartholomew
Ruiz, a sagacious and resolute pilot, well experienced in the navigation of the Southern Ocean.
He was a native of Moguer, in Andalusia, that little
nursery of nautical enterprise, which furnished sc
many seamen for the first voyages of Columbus
Without touching at the intervening points of the
coast, which offered no attraction to the voyagers,
they stood farther out to sea, steering direct for the
Rio de San Juan, the utmost limit reached by Almagro. The season was better selected than on the
former occasion, and they were borne along by
favorable breezes to the place of their destination,
which they reached without accident in a few days.
Entering the mouth of the river, they saw the banks
well lined with Indian habitations; and Pizarro, disembarking, at the head of a party of soldiers, succeeded in surprising a small village and carrying off
a considerable booty of gold ornaments found in the
dwellings, together with a few of the natives.12
Flushed with their success, the two chiefs were
confident that the sight of the rich spoil so speedily
obtained could not fail to draw adventurers to their
standard in Panama; and, as they felt more than
ever the necessity of a stronger force to cope with
the thickening population of the country which they
were now to penetrate, it was decided that Almagro should return with the treasure and beat up for
12 Ibid., pp. 180, 181. —Na- 1.- Herrera, Hist. General, dec
harro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.- 3, lib. 8, cap. 13.
Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap.




CH. III.]  RUIZ EXPLORES THE COAST.      24S
reinforcements, while the pilot Ruiz, in the other
vessel, should reconnoitre the country towards the
south, and obtain such information as might determine their future movements. Pizarro, with the
rest of the force, would remain in the neighbou'hood of the river, as he was assured by the Indian prisoners, that not far in the interior was an
open reach of country, where he and his men could
find comfortable quarters. This arrangement was
instantly put in execution. We will first accompany the intrepid pilot in his cruise towards the
south.
Coasting along the great continent, with his canvas still spread to favorable winds, the first place
at which Ruiz cast anchor was off the little island
of Gallo, about two degrees north. The inhabitants, who were not numerous, were prepared to
give him a hostile reception, - for tidings of the
invaders had preceded them along the country, and
even reached this insulated spot.  As the object
of Ruiz was to explore, not to conquer, he did not
care to entangle himself in hostilities with the natives; so, changing his purpose of landing, he
weighed anchor, and ran down the coast as far as
what is now called the Bay of St. Matthew. The
country, which, as he advanced, continued to exhibit evidence of a better culture as well as of a
more dense population than the parts hitherto seen,
was crowded, along the shores, with spectators, who
gave no signs of fear or hostility. They stood gazing on the vessel of the white men as it glided




244             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BOOK II.
smoothly into the crystal waters of the bay, fancying it, says an old writer, some mysterious being
descended from the skies.
Without staying long enough on this friendly
coast to undeceive the simple people, Ruiz, standing off shore, struck out into the deep sea; but
he had not sailed far in that direction, when he
was surprised by the sight of a vessel, seeming
in the distance like a caravel of considerable size,
traversed by a large sail that carried it sluggishly
over the waters.    The old navigator was not a
little perplexed by this phenomenon, as he was confident no European bark could have been before
him in these latitudes, and no Indian nation, yet
discovered, not even the civilized Mexican, was
acquainted with the use of sails in navigation. As
he drew near, he found it was a large vessel, or
rather raft, called balsa by the natives, consisting
of a number of huge timbers of a light, porous
wood, tightly lashed together, with a frail flooring of reeds raised on them  by way of deck.  Two
masts or sturdy poles, erected in the middle of the
vessel, sustained a large square-sail of cotton, while
a rude kind of rudder and a movable keel, made of
plank inserted between the logs, enabled the mar
ner to give a direction to the floating fabric, which
held on its course without the aid of oar or paddle.Y
13 ", Traia sus manteles y an- brimientos de F. Pizarro y Diego
tenas de muy fina madera y velas de Almagro, sacada del Codice,
de algodon del mismo talle de ma- No. 120 de la Biblioteca Imperial
nera que los nuestros navios." de Vienna, MS
Relacion de los Primeros Descn



CH. III.]     RUIZ EXPLORES THE COAST.                245
The simple architecture of this craft was sufficient
for the purposes of the natives, and indeed has
continued to answer them to the present day; for
the balsa, surmounted by small thatched huts or
cabins, still supplies the most commodious means
for the transportation of passengers and luggage on
the streams and along the shores of this part of the
South American continent.
On coming alongside, Ruiz found several Indians, both men and women, on board, some with
rich ornaments on their persons, besides several articles wrought with considerable skill in gold and
silver, which they were carrying for purposes of
traffic to the different places along the coast. But
what most attracted his attention was the woollen
cloth of which some of their dresses were made.
It was of a fine texture, delicately embroidered
with figures of birds and flowers, and dyed in
brilliant colors.   He also observed      in the boat a
pair of balances made to weigh the precious metals.'4 His astonishment at these proofs of ingenuity
14 In a short notice of this ex- alaremes, y otras muchas ropas,
pedition, written apparently at the todo lo mas de ello muy labrado de
time of it, or soon after, a minute labores muy ricas de colores de
specification is given of the several grana y carmisi y azul y amarillo,
articles found in the balsa; among y de todas otras colores de diversas
them  are mentioned vases and maneras de labores y figuras de
mirrors of burnished silver, and aves y animales, y Pescados, y
curious fabrics both cotton and arbolesas y trahian unos pesos chiwoollen.  " Espejos guarnecidos quitos de pesar oro como hechura
de la dicha plata, y tasas y otras de Romana, y otras muchas cosas."
vasijas para beber, trahian muchas Relacion sacada de la Biblioteca
mantas de lana y de algodon, y Imperial de Vienna, MS.
camisas y aljubas y alcaqeres v




246           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [Boox II.
and civilization, so much higher than any thing he
had ever seen in the country, was heightened by
the intelligence which he collected from some of
these Indians. Two of them had come from Tumbez, a Peruvian port, some degrees to the south;
and they gave him to understand, that in their
neighbourhood the fields were covered with large
flocks of the animals from which the wool was
obtained, and that gold and silver were almost as
common as wood in the palaces of their monarch. The Spaniards listened greedily to reports
which harmonized so well with their fond desires.
Though half distrusting the exaggeration, Ruiz resolved to detain some of the Indians, including the
natives of Tumbez, that they might repeat the wondrous tale to his commander, and at the same time,
by learning the Castilian, might hereafter serve as
interpreters with their countrymen. The rest of
the party he suffered to proceed without further interruption on their voyage. Then holding on his
course, the prudent pilot, without touching at any
other point of the coast, advanced as far as the
Punta de Pasado, about half a degree south, having
the glory of being the first European who, sailing
in this direction on the Pacific, had crossed the
equinoctial line. This was the limit of his discoveries; on reaching which he tacked about, and
standing away to the north, succeeded, after an
absence of several weeks, in regaining the spot
where he had left Pizarro and his comrades.15
15 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 181.- Rela



Cu. III.] PIZARRO'S SUFFERINGS IN THE FORESTS.    247
It was high time; for the spirits of that little
band had been sorely tried by the perils they had
encountered. On the departure of his vessels, Pizarro marched into the interior, in the hope of finding the pleasant champaign country which had
been promised him by the natives. But at every
step the forests seemed to grow denser and darker,
and the trees towered to a height such as he had
never seen, even in these fruitful regions, where
Nature works on so gigantic a scale.'6    Hill continued to rise above hill, as he advanced, rolling onward, as it were, by successive waves to join that
colossal barrier of the Andes, whose frosty sides, far
away above the clouds, spread out like a curtain of
burnished silver, that seemed to connect the heavens
with the earth.
On crossing these woody eminences, the forlorn
adventurers would plunge into ravines of frightful depth, where the exhalations of a humid soil
steamed up amidst the incense of sweet-scented
flowers, which shone through the deep glooms in
every conceivable variety of color. Birds, especially of the parrot tribe, mocked this fantastic variety
of nature with tints as brilliant as those of the vege
cion sacada de la Biblioteca Impe- nology is a thing beneath the no
rial de Vienna, MS.-Herrera, tice of these ancient chroniclers.
Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 8, cap. who seem to think that the date
13.                         of events, so fresh in their own
One of the authorities speaks of memory, must be so in that of
his having been sixty days on this every one else.
cruise. I regret not to be able to  16," Todo era montaias, con
give precise dates of the events in arboles hasta el cielo! " Herrera,
these early expeditions. But chro- Hist. General, ubi supra.




248            DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BOOK II.
table world. Monkeys chattered in crowds above
their heads, and made grimaces like the fiendish
spirits of these solitudes; while hideous reptiles,
engendered in the slimy depths of the pools, gathered round the footsteps of the wanderers. Here
was seen the gigantic boa, coiling his unwieldy folds
about the trees, so as hardly to be distinguished
from their trunks, till he was ready to dart upon his
prey; and alligators lay basking on the borders of
the streams, or, gliding under the waters, seized
their incautious victim before he was aware of
their approach.17 Many of the Spaniards perished
miserably in this way, and others were waylaid by
the natives, who kept a jealous eye on their movements, and availed themselves of every opportunity
to take them at advantage. Fourteen of Pizarro's
men were cut off at once in a canoe which had
stranded on the bank of a stream.l8
Famine came in addition to other troubles, and it
was with difficulty that they found the means of sustaining life on the scanty fare of the forest, - occasionally the potato, as it grew without cultivation, or
the wild cocoa-nut, or, on the shore, the salt and
bitter fruit of the mangrove; though the shore was
less tolerable than the forest, from the swarms of
mosquitos which compelled the wretched adventurers to bury their bodies up to their very faces in
the sand.   In this extremity of suffering, they
thought only of return; and all schemes of avarice
17 Ibid., ubi supra.   Hist. de las Ind., cap. 108.18 Ibid., loc. cit. - Gomara, Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.




CH. III.]  ARRIVAL OF NEW RECRUITS.       249
and ambition —except with Pizarro and a few
dauntless spirits —were exchanged for the one
craving desire to return to Panama.
It was at this crisis that the pilot Ruiz returned
with the report of his brilliant discoveries; and, not
long after, Almagro sailed into port with his vessel
laden with refreshments, and a considerable rein
forcement of volunteers. The voyage of that commander had been prosperous. When he arrived at
Panama, he found the government in the hands of
Don Pedro de los Rios; and he came to anchor in
the harbour, unwilling to trust himself on shore, till
he had obtained from Father Luque some account
of the dispositions of the executive. These were
sufficiently favorable; for the new governor had particular instructions fully to carry out the arrangements made by his predecessor with the associates.
On learning Almagro's arrival, he came down to the
port to welcome him, professing his willingness to
afford every facility for the execution of his designs.
Fortunately, just before this period, a small body of
military adventurers had come to Panama from the
mother country, burning with desire to make their
fortunes in the New World. They caught much
more eagerly than the old and wary colonists at the
golden bait held out to them; and with their addition, and that of a few supernumerary stragglers
who hung about the town, Almagro found himself
at the head of a reinforcement of at least eighty
men, with which, having laid in a fresh supply of
stores, he again set sail for the Rio de San Juan.
VOL. I.        32




250           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BOOK II.
The arrival of the new recruits all eager to follow
up the expedition, the comfortable change in their
circumstances produced by an ample supply of refreshments, and the glowing pictures of the wealth
that awaited them in the south, all had their effect
on the dejected spirits of Pizarro's followers. Their
late toils and privations were speedily forgotten,
and, with the buoyant and variable feelings incident
to a freebooter's life, they now called as eagerly on
their commander to go forward in the voyage, as
they had before called on him to abandon it. Availing themselves of the renewed spirit of enterprise,
the captains embarked on board their vessels, and,
under the guidance of the veteran pilot, steered in
the same track he had lately pursued.
But the favorable season for a southern course,
which in these latitudes lasts but a few months in
the year, had been suffered to escape. The breezes
blew steadily towards the north, and a strong current, not far from shore, set in the same direction.
The winds frequently rose into tempests, and
the unfortunate voyagers were tossed about, for
many days, in the boiling surges, amidst the most
awful storms of thunder and lightning, until, at
length, they found a secure haven in the island
of Gallo, already visited by Ruiz. As they were
now too strong in numbers to apprehend an assault,
the crews landed, and, experiencing no molestation
from the natives, they continued on the island for a
fortnight, refitting their damaged vessels, and recruiting themselves after the fatigues of the ocean.




CH. III.] FRESH DISCOVERIES AND DISASTERS.  251
Then, resuming their voyage, the captains stood
towards the south until they reached the Bay of St.
Matthew. As they advanced along the coast, they
were struck, as Ruiz had been before, with the
evidences of a higher civilization constantly exhibited in the general aspect of the country and its
inhabitants. The hand of cultivation was visible in
every quarter. The natural appearance of the coast,
too, had something in it more inviting; for, instead
of the eternal labyrinth of mangrove-trees, with
their complicated roots snarled into formidable coils
under the water, as if to waylay and entangle the
voyager, the low margin of the sea was covered with
a stately growth of ebony, and with a species of
mahogany, and other hard woods that take the most
brilliant and variegated polish. The sandal-wood,
and many balsamic trees of unknown names, scattered their sweet odors far and wide, not in an
atmosphere tainted with vegetable corruption, but
on the pure breezes of the ocean, bearing health as
well as fragrance on their wings. Broad patches
of cultivated land intervened, disclosing hill-sides
covered with the yellow maize and the potato,
or checkered, in the lower levels, with blooming
plantations of cacao.l9
The villages became more numerous; and, as the
vessels rode at anchor off the port of Tacamez, the
19 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. sinos, Annales, MS., ario 1526.Barcia, tom. III. p. 181. —Rela- Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1,
cion sacada de la Biblioteca Impe- cap. 1. - Relacion del Primer.
rial de Vienna, MS. —Naharro, Descub., MS.
Relacion Sumaria, MS. - Monte



252                DISCOVERY OF PERU.              [BOOK II.
Spaniards saw before them a town of two thousand
houses or more, laid out into streets, with a numerous population clustering around it in the suburbs.2~
The men and women displayed many ornaments of
gold and precious stones about their persons, which
may seem strange, considering that the Peruvian Incas claimed a monopoly of jewels for themselves and
the nobles on whom they condescended to bestow
them. But, although the Spaniards had now reached the outer limits of the Peruvian empire, it was
not Peru, but Quito, and that portion of it but recently brought under the sceptre of the Incas, where
the ancient usages of the people could hardly have
been effaced under the oppressive system of the
American despots. The adjacent country was,
moreover, particularly rich in gold, which, collected
from the washings of the streams, still forms one
of the staple products of Barbacoas. Here, too,
was the fair River of Emeralds, so called from the
quarries of the beautiful gem on its borders, from
which the Indian monarchs enriched their treasury.21
20 Pizarro's secretary speaks of scription of its mineral and vegetaone of the towns as containing 3,000 ble treasures. The emerald mine
houses. "En esta Tierra havia in the neighbourhood of Las Esmemuchos Mantenimientos, i la Gente raldas, once so famous, is now
tenia mui buena orden de vivir, los placed under the ban of a superPueblos con sus Calles, i Plagas: stition, more befitting the times of
Pueblo havia que tenia mas de tres the Incas. " I never visited it,"
mil Casas, i otros havia menores." says the traveller, " owing to the
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. superstitious dread of the natives,
III. p. 181.                  who assured me that it was en21 Stevenson, who visited this chanted, and guarded by an enorpart of the coast early in the pres- mous dragon, which poured forth
ent century, is profuse in his de- thunder and lightning on those who




CH. III.] FRESH DISCOVERIES AND DISASTERS.     253
The Spaniards gazed with delight on these undeniable evidences of wealth, and saw in the careful
cultivation of the soil a comfortable assurance that
they had at length reached the land which had so
long been seen in brilliant, though distant, perspective before them. But here again they were doomed
to be disappointed by the warlike spirit of the people, who, conscious of their own strength, showed
no disposition to quail before the invaders. On
the contrary, several of their canoes shot out, loaded
with warriors, who, displaying a gold mask as their
ensign, hovered round the vessels with looks of defiance, and, when pursued, easily took shelter under
the lee of the land.22
A more formidable body mustered along the shore,
to the number, according to the Spanish accounts,
of at least ten thousand warriors, eager, apparently,
to come to close action with the invaders. Nor
could Pizarro, who had landed with a party of his
men in the hope of a conference with the natives,
wholly prevent hostilities; and it might have gone
hard with the Spaniards, hotly pressed by their
resolute enemy so superior in numbers, but for a
ludicrous accident reported by the historians as hapdared to ascend the river." Resi- dieron una suelta a los navios por
dence in South America, vol. II. avisarlos en manera que no los
p. 406.                   pudiese enojar, y asi dieron vuelta
22 c" Salieron a los dichos navios acia a su pueblo, y los navios no
quatorce canoas grandes con mu- los pudieron tomar porque se mechos Indios dos armados de oro y tieron en los baxos junto i la
plata, y trahian en la una canoa 6 tierra." Relacion sacada de la Biben estandarte y encima de 61 un lioteca Imperial de Vienna, MS.
bolto de un mucho desio de oro, y




254               DISCOVERY OF PERU.               [Boox II
pening to one of the cavaliers. This was a fall
from his horse, which so astonished the barbarians,
who were not prepared for this division of what
seemed one and the same being into two, that, filled
with consternation, they fell back, and left a way
open for the Christians to regain their vessels! 23
A council of war was now called. It was evident that the forces of the Spaniards were unequal
to a contest with so numerous and well-appointed a
body of natives; and, even if they should prevail
here, they could have no hope of stemming the torrent which must rise against them in their progress -for the country was becoming more and
more thickly settled, and towns and hamlets started into view at every new headland which they
doubled.    It was better, in the opinion of some, —
the faint-hearted, —to abandon the enterprise at
once, as beyond their strength. But Almagro took
a different view   of the affair.    " To go home," he
said, " with nothing done, would be ruin, as well as
disgrace. There was scarcely one but had left
creditors at Panama, who looked for payment to the
23 " Al tiempo del romper los terio; porque a no acaecer esto se
unos con los otros, uno de aquellos presume, que mataran todos los
de caballo cay6 del caballo abajo; cristianos." (Relacion del Primer.
y como los Indios vieron dividirse Descub., MS.) This way of acaquel animal en dos partes, tenien- counting for the panic of the bardo por cierto que todo era una cosa, barians is certainly quite as credible
fue tanto el miedo que tubieron as the explanation, under similar
que volvieron las espaldas dando circumstances, afforded by the apvoces a los suyos, diciendo, que se parition of the militant apostle St
habia hecho dos haciendo admira- James, so often noticed by the hiscion dello: lo cual no fue sin mis- torians of these wars.




CH. III.] FRESH DISCOVERIES AND DISASTERS.   255
fruits of this expedition. To go home now would
ue to deliver themselves at once into their hands.
It would be to go to prison. Better to roam a freeman, though in the wilderness, than to lie bound
with fetters in the dungeons of Panama.2     The
only course for them," he concluded, " was the one
lately pursued.  Pizarro might find some more commodious place where he could remain with part of
the force, while he himself went back for recruits to
Panama. The story they had now to tell of the
riches of the land, as they had seen them with their
own eyes, would put their expedition in a very different light, and could not fail to draw to their
banner as many volunteers as they needed."
But this recommendation, however judicious, was
not altogether to the taste of the latter commander,
who did not relish the part, which constantly fell to
him, of remaining behind in the swamps and forests
of this wild country. " It is all very well," he said
to Almagro, " for you, who pass your time pleasantly
enough, careering to and fro in your vessel, or snugly sheltered in a land of plenty at Panama; but it
is quite another matter for those who stay behind
to droop and die of hunger in the wilderness."2 
To this Almagro retorted with some heat, professing
24 "N No era bien bolver pobres, tualla, no padecia la miseria de la
a pedir limosna, i morir en las hambre, i otras angustias que teCarceles, los que tenian deudas." nian, i ponian a todos en estrema
Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, congoja." (Herrera, Hist. Genelib. 10, cap. 2.         ral, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 2.) The
25 "Como iba, i venia en los cavaliers of Cortes and Pizarro
Navios, adonde no le faltaba Vi- however doughty their achieve



256             DISCOVERY OF PERU.           [BOOK II
his own willingness to take charge of the brave
men who would remain with him, if Pizarro declined it. The controversy assuming a more angry
and menacing tone, from words they would have
soon come to blows, as both, laying their hands on
their swords, were preparing to rush on each other,
when the treasurer Ribera, aided by the pilot Ruiz,
succeeded in pacifying them. It required but little
effort on the part of these cooler counsellors to convince the cavaliers of the folly of a conduct which
must at once terminate the expedition in a manner
little creditable to its projectors. A reconciliation
consequently took place, sufficient, at least in outward show, to allow the two commanders to act
together in concert.    Almagro's   plan  was   then
adopted; and it only remained to find out the most
secure and convenient spot for Pizarro's quarters.
Several days were passed in touching at different
parts of the coast, as they retraced their course;
but everywhere the natives appeared to have caught
the alarm, and assumed a menacing, and from their
numbers a formidable, aspect. The more northerly
region, with its unwholesome fens and forests, where
nature wages a war even more relentless than man,
was not to be thought of. In this perplexity, they
decided on the little island of Gallo, as being, on
the whole, from its distance from the shore, and
ments, certainly fell short of those  Because, when thorough deserts vast
knights-errant, commemorated by  And regions desolate they past,
knights-errant, commemorated by  Unless they grazed, there's not one word.
Hudibras, who,              Of their provision on record;
" As some think,  Which made some confidently write,
Of old did neither eat nor drink;  They had no stomachs but to fight.'




CH. III.]  PIZARRO ON THE ISLE OF GALLO.             257
from the scantiness of its population, the most eligible spot for them in their forlorn and destitute
condition.2
But no sooner was the resolution of the two captains made known, than a feeling of discontent
broke forth among their followers, especially those
who were to remain with Pizarro on the island.
" What! " they exclaimed, "were they to be dragged
to that obscure spot to die by hunger? The whole
expedition had been a cheat and a failure, from beginning to end. The golden countries, so much
vaunted, had seemed to fly before them as they
advanced; and the little gold they had been fortunate enough to glean had all been sent back to
Panama to entice other fools to follow their example. What had they got in return for all their sufferings? The only treasures they could boast were
their bows and arrows, and they were now to be
left to die on this dreary island, without so much as
a rood of consecrated ground to lay their bones
in! " 27
6 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y while the inhospitable forests and
Conq., MS. - Relacion sacada de the particularly ferocious character
la Biblioteca Imperial de Vienna, of the natives continued to make
MS.- Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, these regions but little known down
MS. -Zarate, Conq. del Peru, to his time. See his Voyages and
lib. 1, cap. 1.-Herrera, Hist. Adventures, (London, 1776,) vol.
General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 2.  I. chap. 14.
It was singularly unfortunate,  27 " Miserablemente morir adonthat Pizarro, instead of striking de aun no havia lugar Sagrado, paa
farther south, should have so long sepultura de sus cuerpos." Herclung to the northern shores of the rera, Hist General, dec. 3, lib. 10
continent. Dampier notices them  cap. 3.
as afflicted with incessant rain;
VOL. I.            33




258             DISCOVERY OF PERU.          [BOOK II.
In this exasperated state of feeling, several of the
soldiers wrote back to their friends, informing them
of their deplorable condition, and complaining of
the cold-blooded manner in which they were to be
sacrificed to the obstinate cupidity of their leaders.
But the latter were wary enough to anticipate this
movement, and Almagro defeated it by seizing all
the letters in the vessels, and thus cutting off at
once the means of communication with their friends
at home. Yet this act of unscrupulous violence,
like most other similar acts, fell short of its purpose;
for a soldier named Sarabia had the ingenuity to
evade it by introducing a letter into a ball of cotton,
which was to be taken to Panama as a specimen
of the products of the country, and presented to
the governor's lady.28
The letter, which was signed by several of the
disaffected soldiery besides the writer, painted in
gloomy colors the miseries of their condition, accused the two commanders of being the authors
of this, and called on the authorities of Panama to interfere by sending a vessel to take them
from the desolate spot, while some of them might
still be found surviving the horrors of their confinement. The epistle concluded with a stanza, in
which the two leaders were stigmatized as partners
s " Metieron en un ovillo de cosa de risa todo, pues las riquezas
algodon una carta firmada de mu- se habian convertido en flechas, y
chos en que sumariamente daban no havia otra cosa." MonteAinos.
cuenta de las hambres, muertes y Annales, MS., afio 1527.
desnudez que padecian, y que era




CH. III.]    PIZARRO ON THE ISLE OF GALLO.               259
in a slaughter-house; one being employed to drive
in the cattle for the other to butcher. The verses,
which had a currency in their day among the colonists to which they were certainly not entitled by
their poetical merits, may be thus rendered into
corresponding doggerel:
" Look out, Senor Governor,
For the drover while he's near;
Since he goes home to get the sheep
For the butcher, who stays here."29
29 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Juan de Sarabia, natural de TruBarcia, tom. III. p. 181.-Na- jillo, esta cuarteta: -
harro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.-         Pues Seior Gobernador,
Balboa, Hist. du Perou, chap.         Mirelo bien por entero
que alla va el recogedor,
15.                                   y aci queda el carnicero."
"Al fin de la peticion que ha- Montesinos, Annales, MS., ado
cian en la carta al Governador puso 1527.




CHAPTER IV.
INDIGNATION OF THE GOVERNOR. STERN RESOLUTION OF PIZARRO.
PROSECUTION OF THE VOYAGE. -BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.DISCOVERIES ALONG -THE COAST. - RETURN TO PANAMA. - PlZARRO EMBARKS FOR SPAIN.
1527- 1528.
NOT long after Almagro's departure, Pizarro sent
off the remaining vessel, under the pretext of its being put in repair at Panama. It probably relieved
him of a part of his followers, whose mutinous spirit
made them an obstacle rather than a help in his
forlorn condition, and with whom he was the more
willing to part from the difficulty of finding subsistence on the barren spot which he now occupied.
Great was the dismay occasioned by the return
of Almagro and his followers, in the little community
of Panama; for the letter, surreptitiously conveyed
in the ball of cotton, fell into the hands for which it
was intended, and the contents soon got abroad
with the usual quantity of exaggeration. The haggard and dejected mien of the adventurers, of itself, told a tale sufficiently disheartening, and it was
soon generally believed that the few ill-fated survivors of the expedition were detained against their




CH. IV.1  INDIGNATION OF THE GOVERNOR.   261
will by Pizarro, to end their days with their disappointed leader on his desolate island.
Pedro de los Rios, the governor, was so much
incensed at the result of the expedition, and the
waste of life it had occasioned to the colony, that
he turned a deaf ear to all the applications of Luque
and Almagro for further countenance in the affair;
he derided their sanguine anticipations of the future,
and finally resolved to send an officer to the isle of
Gallo, with orders to bring back every Spaniard
whom he should find still living in that dreary
abode. Two vessels were immediately despatched
for the purpose, and placed under charge of a cavalier named Tafur, a native of Cordova.
Meanwhile Pizarro and his followers were experiencing all the miseries which might have been
expected from the character of the barren spot on
which they were imprisoned. They were, indeed,
relieved from all apprehensions of the natives,
since these had quitted the island on its occupation
by the white men; but they had to endure the
pains of hunger even in a greater degree than they
had formerly experienced in the wild woods of the
neighbouring continent. Their principal food was
crabs and such shell-fish as they could scantily pick
up along the shores. Incessant storms of thunder
and lightning, for it was the rainy season, swept
over the devoted island, and drenched them with a
perpetual flood. Thus, half-naked, and pining with
famine, there were few in that little company who
did not feel the spirit of enterprise quenched within




262            DISCOVERY OF PERU.          [BOOK II.
them, or who looked for any happier termination
of their difficulties than that afforded by a return to
Panama. The appearance of Tafur, therefore, with
his two vessels, well stored with provisions, was
greeted with all the rapture that the crew of a sinking wreck might feel on the arrival of some unexpected succour; and the only thought, after satisfying the immediate cravings of hunger, was to embark and leave the detested isle for ever.
But by the same vessel letters came to Pizarro
from his two confederates, Luque and Almagro, beseeching him not to despair in his present extremity,
but to hold fast to his original purpose. To return
under the present circumstances would be to seal
the fate of the expedition; and they solemnly engaged, if he would remain firm at his post, to furnish him in a short time with the necessary means
for going forward.'
A ray of hope was enough for the courageous
spirit of Pizarro. It does not appear that he himself had entertained, at any time, thoughts of returning. If he had, these words of encouragement
entirely banished them from his bosom, and he prepared to stand the fortune of the cast on which he
had so desperately ventured. He knew, however,
that solicitations or remonstrances would avail little
with the companions of his enterprise; and he prob1 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. 1527.- Herrera, Hist. General,
Barcia, tom. III. p. 182.- Zarate, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 3. - Naharro,
Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 2. - Relacion Sumaria, MS.
Montesinos, Annales, MS., ano




CH. IV.]    STERN RESOLUTION OF PIZARRO.            263
ably did not care to win over the more timid spirits
who, by perpetually looking back, would only be a
clog on his future movements. He announced his
own purpose, however, in a laconic but decided
manner, characteristic of a man more accustomed
to act than to talk, and well calculated to make
an impression on his rough followers.
Drawing his sword, he traced a line with it on
the sand from east to west. Then turning towards
the south, " Friends and comrades!" he said, "on
that side are toil, hunger, nakedness, the drenching
storm, desertion, and death; on this side, ease and
pleasure. There lies Peru with its riches; here, Panama and its poverty. Choose, each man, what best
becomes a brave Castilian. For my part, I go to
the south." So saying, he stepped across the line.2
He was followed by the brave pilot Ruiz; next by
Pedro de Candia, a cavalier, born, as his name imports, in one of the isles of Greece. Eleven others
successively crossed the line, thus intimating their
willingness to abide the fortunes of their leader, for
good or for evil.3 Fame, to quote the enthusiastic
2 " Obedeciola Pizarro y antes pobres, por alla al Peru a ser ricos.
que se egecutase saco un Puiial, y Escoja el que fuere buen Castellano
con notable animo hizo con la punta lo que mas bien le estubiere. Diuna raya de Oriente a Poniente; y ciendo esto pas6 la raya: siguiesefalando al medio dia, que era la ronle Barthome Ruiz natural de
parte de su noticia, y derrotero Moguer, Pedro de Candi Griego,
dijo: camaradas y amigos esta natural de Candia." Montesinos,
parte es la de la muerte, de los Annales, MS., aino 1527.
trabajos, de las hambres, de la  3 The names of these thirteen
desnudez, de los aguaceros, y de- faithful companions are preserved
samparos; la otra la del gusto: in the convention made with the
Por aqui se ba A Panama a ser Crown two years later, where they




264                DISCOVERY OF PERU.              [BOOK li.
language of an      ancient chronicler, has commemorated the names of this little band, "who thus, in
the face of difficulties unexampled in history, with
death rather than riches for their reward, preferred
it all to abandoning their honor, and stood firm by
their leader as an example of loyalty to future
ages." 4
But the act excited no such admiration in the
mind of Tafur, who looked on it as one of gross
disobedience to the commands of the governor, and
as little better than madness, involving the certain
destruction of the parties engaged in it. He refused
to give any sanction to it himself by leaving one of
his vessels with the adventurers to prosecute their
voyage, and it was with great difficulty that he
could be persuaded even to allow them a part of the
stores which he had brought for their support. This
had no influence on their determination, and the
little party, bidding adieu to their returning comrades, remained unshaken in their purpose ot abiding the fortunes of their commander.5
are suitably commemorated  for fama. Estos los que cercados de
their loyalty. Their names should los mayores trabajos que pudo el
not be omitted in a history of the Mundo ofrecer a hombres, y los que
Conquest of Peru. They were estando mas para esperar la muerte
" Bartolom6 Ruiz, Cristoval de que las riquezas que se les promePeralta, Pedro de Candia, Domingo  tian, todo lo pospusieron A la honra,
de Soria Luce, Nicolas de Ribera, y siguieron a su capitan y caudillo
Francisco de Cuellar, Alonso de para egemplo de lealtad en lo fuMolina, Pedro Alcon, Garcia de turo." Montesinos, Annales, MS.,
Jerez, Anton de Carrion, Alonso  aflo 1527.
Briceio, Martin de Paz, Joan de  5 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib.
la Torre."                     1, cap. 2.- Montesinos, Annales,
4 "Estos fueron los trece de la MS., afo 1527.-Naharro, Re



CH. IV.]   STERN RESOLUTION OF PIZARRO.            265
There is something striking to the imagination
in the spectacle of these few brave spirits, thus consecrating themselves to a daring enterprise, which
seemed as far above their strength as any recorded
in the fabulous annals of knight-errantry. A handful
of men, without food, without clothing, almost without arms, without knowledge of the land to which
they were bound, without vessel to transport them,
were here left on a lonely rock in the ocean with
the avowed purpose of carrying on a crusade against
a powerful empire, staking their lives on its success.
What is there in the legends of chivalry that surpasses it? This was the crisis of Pizarro's fate.
There are moments in the lives of men, which, as
they are seized or neglected, decide their future
destiny.6 Had Pizarro faltered from his strong purpose, and yielded to the occasion, now so temptingly
presented, for extricating himself and his broken
band from their desperate position, his name would
have been buried with his fortunes, and the conquest
of Peru would have been left for other and more successful adventurers. But his constancy was equal
to the occasion, and his conduct here proved him
lacion Sumaria, MS. -Herrera, displeased to refresh his memory
Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10, with it.
cap. 3.                      " Chi cerca in questo mondo aver tesoro,
6 This common sentiment is ex-  0 diletto, e piacere, honore, e statc,
Ponga la mano a questa chioma d' oro,
pressed with uncommon beauty by  Ch' io porto in fronte, e lo fart beamo;
the fanciful Boiardo, where he rep-  Ma quando ha in destro ai fatto lavoro,
resents Rinaldo as catching For-  Non prenda indugio, che'1 tempo passato
tune, under the guise of the fickle  Perduto W tutto, e non ritoma mai,
Ed io mi volto, e lui lascio con guai."
fairy Morgana, by the forelock.  Orlando, Innamorato, lib. 2. canto &
The Italian reader may not be
VOL. I.           34




266           DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [BooK II
competent to the perilous post he had assumed, and
inspired others with a confidence in him which was
the best assurance of success.
In the vessel that bore back Tafur and those who
seceded from the expedition the pilot Ruiz was
also permitted to return, in order to cooperate with
Luque and Almagro in their application for further
succour.
Not long after the departure of the ships, it was
decided by Pizarro to abandon his present quarters,
which had little to recommend them, and which, he
reflected, might now be exposed to annoyance from
the original inhabitants, should they take courage
and return, on learning the diminished number of
the white men. The Spaniards, therefore, by his
orders, constructed a rude boat or raft, on which
they succeeded in transporting themselves to the
little island of Gorgona, twenty-five leagues to the
north of their present residence. It lay about five
leagues from the continent, and was uninhabited.
It had some advantages over the isle of Gallo; for
it stood higher above the sea, and was partially
covered with wood, which afforded shelter to a
species of pheasant, and the hare or rabbit of the
country, so that the Spaniards, with their crossbows, were enabled to procure a tolerable supply
of game. Cool streams that issued from the living
rock furnished abundance of water, though the
drenching rains that fell, without intermission, left
them in no danger of perishing by thirst. From
this annoyance they found some protection in the




CH. IV.]  STERN RESOLUTION OF PIZARRO.    267
rude huts which they constructed; though here, as
in their former residence, they suffered from the
no less intolerable annoyance of venomous insects,
which multiplied and swarmed in the exhalations
of the rank and stimulated soil. In this dreary
abode Pizarro omitted no means by which to sustain the drooping spirits of his men. Morning prayers were duly said, and the evening hymn to the
Virgin was regularly chanted; the festivals of the
church were carefully commemorated, and every
means taken by their commander to give a kind
of religious character to his enterprise, and to inspire his rough followers with a confidence in the
protection of Heaven, that might support them in
their perilous circumstances.7
In these uncomfortable quarters, their chief employment was to keep watch on the melancholy
ocean, that they might hail the first signal of the
anticipated succotr. But many a tedious month
passed away, and no sign of it appeared.   All
around was the same wide waste of waters, except
to the eastward, where the frozen crest of the
Andes, touched with the ardent sun of the equator,
glowed like a ridge of fire along the whole extent
of the great continent. Every speck in the distant
horizon was carefully noticed, and the drifting timber or masses of sea-weed, heaving to and fro on
7 "Cada Mafana daban gracias con los Viernes, i Domingos. 
Dios: alastardesdecianlaSalve,.Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3,
i otras Oraciones, por las Horas: lib. 10, cap. 3.
sabian las Fiestas, i tenian cuenta




268             DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [Boox II.
the bosom of the waters, was converted by their
imaginations into the promised vessel; till, sinking
under successive disappointments, hope gradually
gave way to doubt, and doubt settled into despair.8
Meanwhile the vessel of Tafur had reached the
port of Panama.    The tidings which she brought
of the inflexible obstinacy of Pizarro and his followers filled the governor with indignation. He could
look on it in no other light than as an act of suicide,
and steadily refused to send further assistance to
men who were obstinately bent on their own de.
struction. Yet Luque and Almagro were true to
their engagements.  They represented to the governor, that, if the conduct of their comrade was rash,
it was at least in the service of the Crown, and in
prosecuting the great work of discovery. Rios had
been instructed, on his taking the government, to
aid Pizarro in the enterprise; and to desert him now
would be to throw away the remaining chance of
success, and to incur the responsibility of his death
and that of the brave men who adhered to him
These remonstrances, at length, so far operated
on the mind of that functionary, that he reluctantly
consented that a vessel should be sent to the island
of Gorgona, but with no more hands than were
necessary to work her, and with positive instructions
to Pizarro to return in six months and report him8s " Al eabo de muchos Dias bien dentro de la Mar, les parecia,
aguardando, estaban tan angustia- que era el Navio." Herrera, Hist.
dos, que los salages que se hacian General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 4.




Ci. IV.]  PROSECUTION OF THE VOYAGE.       269
self at Panama, whatever might be the future results
of his expedition.
Having thus secured the sanction of the executive, the two associates lost no time in fitting out
a small vessel with stores and a supply of arms
and ammunition, and despatched it to the island.
The unfortunate tenants of this little wilderness,
who had now occupied it for seven months,9 hardly
dared to trust their senses when they descried the
white sails of the friendly bark coming over the
waters. And although, when the vessel anchored
off the shore, Pizarro was disappointed to find that
it brought no additional recruits for the enterprise,
yet he greeted it with joy, as affording the means of
solving the great problem of the existence of the
rich southern empire, and of thus opening the way
for its future conquest. Two of his men were so ill,
that it was determined to leave them in the care of
some of the friendly Indians who had continued
with him through the whole of his sojourn, and to
call for them on his return. Taking with him the
rest of his hardy followers and the natives of Tumbez, he embarked, and, speedily weighing anchor,
bade adieu to the " Hell," as it was called by the
Spaniards, which had been the scene of so much
suffering and such undaunted resolution.'~
9 " Estubieron con estos trabajos tesinos, Annales, MS., afio 1527.
con igualdad de animo siete me- - Naharro, RelacionSumaria, MS.
ses " Montesinos, Annales, MS., -Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3,
aiio 1527.             lib. 10, cap. 4. —Pedro Pizarro,
10 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Descub. y Conq., MS.
Barcia, tom. III. p. 182. - Mon



270           DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [Boos II
Every heart was now elated with hope, as they
found themselves once more on the waters, under
the guidance of the good pilot Ruiz, who, obeying
the directions of the Indians, proposed to steer for
the land of Tumbez, which would bring them at
once into the golden empire of the Incas, -the
El Dorado, of which they had been so long in pursuit. Passing by the dreary isle of Gallo, which
they had such good cause to remember, they stood
farther out to sea until they made Point Tacumez,
near which they had landed on their previous
voyage. They did not touch at any part of the
coast, but steadily held on their way, though considerably impeded by the currents, as well as by the
wind, which blew with little variation from the
south. Fortunately, the wind was light, and, as the
weather was favorable, their voyage, though slow,
was not uncomfortable. In a few days, they came
in sight of Point Pasado, the limit of the pilot's
former navigation; and, crossing the line, the little
bark entered upon those unknown seas which had
never been ploughed by European keel before.
The coast, they observed, gradually declined from
its former bold and rugged character, gently sloping
towards the shore, and spreading out into sandy
plains, relieved here and there by patches of uncommon richness and beauty; while the white cottages
of the natives glistening along the margin of the
sea, and the smoke that rose among the distant hills,
intimated the increasing population of the country.
At length, after the lapse of twenty days from




CH. IV.]   BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.         271
their departure from the island, the adventurous vessel rounded the point of St. Helena, and glided
smoothly into the waters of the beautiful gulf of
Guayaquil. The country was here studded along
the shore with towns and villages, though the
mighty chain of the Cordilleras, sweeping up abruptly from the coast, left but a narrow strip of
emerald verdure, through which numerous rivulets,
spreading fertility around them, wound their way
into the sea.
The voyagers were now abreast of some of the
most stupendous heights of this magnificent range;
Chimborazo, with its broad round summit, towering
like the dome of the Andes, and Cotopaxi, with
its dazzling cone of silvery white, that knows no
change except from the action of its own volcanic
fires; for this mountain is the most terrible of the
American volcanoes, and was in formidable activity
at no great distance from the period of our narrative. Well pleased with the signs of civilization
that opened on them at every league of their progress, the Spaniards, at length, came to anchor, off
the island of Santa Clara, lying at the entrance
of the bay of Tumbez."
The place was uninhabited, but was recognized
11 According to Garcilasso, two of these transactions, where it is
years elapsed between the depar- as difficult to fix a precise date
ture from Gorgona and the arrival amidst the silence, rather thar
at Tumbez. (Cor. Real., Parte the contradictions, of contemporary
2, lib. 1, cap. 11.) Such gross statements, as if the events had
defiance of chronology is rather happened before the deluge.
uncommon even in the narratives




272           DISCOVERY OF PERU       [BooK II.
by the Indians on board, as occasionally resorted to
by the warlike people of the neighbouring isle of
Puna, for purposes of sacrifice and worship. The
Spaniards found on the spot a few bits of gold
rudely wrought into various shapes, and probably
designed as offerings to the Indian deity. Their
hearts were cheered, as the natives assured then
they would see abundance of the same precious
metal in their own city of Tumbez.
The following morning they stood across the bay
for this place. As they drew near, they beheld a
town of considerable size, with many of the buildings apparently of stone and plaster, situated in the
bosom of a fruitful meadow, which seemed to have
been redeemed from the sterility of the surrounding
country by careful and minute irrigation. When
at some distance from shore, Pizarro saw standing
towards him several large balsas, which were found
to be filled with warriors going on an expedition
against the island of Puna. Running alongside of
the Indian flotilla, he invited some of the chiefs to
come on board of his vessel. The Peruvians gazed
with wonder on every object which met their eyes,
and especially on their own countrymen, whom they
had little expected to meet there. The latter informed them in what manner they had fallen into
the hands of the strangers, whom they described as
a wonderful race of beings, that had come thither
for no harm, but solely to be made acquainted with
the country and its inhabitants. This account was
confirmed by the Spanish commander, who per



CH. IV.]  BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.      273
suaded the Indians to return in their balsas and
report what they had learned to their townsmen,
requesting them  at the same time to provide his
vessel with refreshments, as it was his desire to
Dnter into a friendly intercourse with the natives.
The people of Tumbez were gathered along the
shore, and were gazing with unutterable amazement
on the floating castle, which, now having dropped
anchor, rode lazily at its moorings in their bay.
They eagerly listened to the accounts of their countrymen, and instantly reported the affair to the curaca or ruler of the district, who, conceiving that
the strangers must-be beings of a superior order,
prepared at once to comply with their request. It
was not long before several balsas were seen steering for the vessel laden with bananas, plantains,
yuca, Indian corn, sweet potatoes, pine-apples, cocoa-nuts, and other rich products of the bountiful
vale of Tumbez. Game and fish, also, were added,
with a number of llamas, of which Pizarro had
seen the rude drawings belonging to Balboa, but
of which till now he had met with no living specimen. He examined this curious animal, the Peruvian sheep, - or, as the Spaniards called it, the
"little camel" of the Indians, —with much interest, greatly admiring the mixture of wool and hair
which supplied the natives with the materials for
their fabrics.
At that time there happened to be at Tumbez an
Inca noble, or orejon, - for so, as I have already
noticed, men of his rank were called by the Span
VOL. I.        35




274             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BOOx II.
iards, from the huge ornaments of gold attached
to their ears. He expressed great curiosity to see
the wonderful strangers, and had, accordingly, come
out with the balsas for the purpose. It was easy
to perceive from the superior quality of his dress,
as well as from the deference paid to him by the
others, that he was a person of consideration, and
Pizarro received him with marked distinction. He
showed him the different parts of the ship, explaining to him the uses of whatever engaged his attention, and answering his numerous queries, as well
as he could, by means of the Indian interpreters.
The Peruvian chief was especially desirous of knowing whence and why Pizarro and his followers had
come to these shores. The Spanish captain replied,
that he was the vassal of a great prince, the greatest and most powerful in the world, and that he had
come to this country to assert his master's lawful
supremacy over it. He had further come to rescue
the inhabitants from the darkness of unbelief in
which they were now wandering. They worshipped an evil spirit, who would sink their souls into
everlasting perdition; and he would give them the
knowledge of the true and only God, Jesus Christ,
since to believe on him was eternal salvation.'2
The Indian prince listened with deep attention
12 The text abridges somewhat tesinos, Annales, MS., ano 1527
the discourse of the military po- - Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. -
lemic; which is reported at length Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.
by Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, - Relacion del Primer. Descub.,
lib. 10, cap. 4.- See also Mon- MS.




CH. IV.]  BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.     275
and apparent wonder; but answered nothing. It
may be, that neither he nor his interpreters had any
very distinct ideas of the doctrines thus abruptly
revealed to them. It may be that he did not believe there was any other potentate on earth greater
than the Inca; none, at least, who had a better
right to rule over his dominions. And it is very
possible he was not disposed to admit that the great
luminary whom he worshipped was inferior to the
God of the Spaniards. But whatever may have
passed in the untutored mind of the barbarian, he
did not give vent to it, but maintained a discreet
silence, without any attempt to controvert or to convince his Christian antagonist.
He remained on board the vessel till the hour of
dinner, of which he partook with the Spaniards,
expressing his satisfaction at the strange dishes,
and especially pleased with the wine, which he
pronounced far superior to the fermented liquors
of his own country. On taking leave, he courteously pressed the Spaniards to visit Tumbez, and
Pizarro dismissed him with the present, among other
things, of an iron hatchet, which had greatly excited
his admiration; for the use of iron, as we have seen,
was as little known to the Peruvians as to the Mexicans.
On the day following, the Spanish captain sent
one of his own men, named Alonso de Molina, on
shore, accompanied by a negro who had come in the
vessel from Panama, together with a present for
the curaca of some swine and poultry, neither of




276             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BooK II.
which were indigenous to the New     World.   Towards evening his emissary returned with a fresh
supply of fruits and vegetables, that the friendly
people sent to the vessel. Molina had a wondrous
tale to tell. On landing, he was surrounded by the
natives, who expressed the greatest astonishment at
his dress, his fair complexion, and his long beard.
The women, especially, manifested great curiosity
in respect to him, and Molina seemed to be entirely
won by their charms and captivating manners. He
probably intimated his satisfaction by his demeanour,
since they urged him to stay among them, promising
in that case to provide him with a beautiful wife.
Their surprise was equally great at the complexion of his sable companion. They could not believe
it was natural, and tried to rub off the imaginary
dye with their hands. As the African bore all this
with characteristic good-humor, displaying at the
same time his rows of ivory teeth, they were prodigiously delighted.'3 The animals were no less
above their comprehension; and, when the cock
crew, the simple people clapped their hands, and
inquired what he was saying.'4     Their intellects
were so bewildered by sights so novel, that they
seemed incapable of distinguishing between man
and brute.
Molina was then escorted to the residence of the
13 " No se cansaban de mirarle, do sus Dientes blancos." Herrera,
hacianle labar, para ver si se le Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10,
quitaba la Tinta negra, i 61 lo hacia cap. 5.
de buena gana, riendose, i mostran-  14 Ibid., ubi supra.




CH. IV.]  BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.       277
curaca, whom he found living in much state, with
porters stationed at his doors, and with a quantity
of gold and silver vessels, from which he was served.
He was then taken to different parts of the Indian
city, saw a fortress built of rough stone, and, though
low, spreading over a large extent of ground.5
Near this was a temple; and the Spaniard's description of its decorations, blazing with gold and
silver, seemed so extravagant, that Pizarro, distrusting his whole account, resolved to send a more discreet and trustworthy emissary on the following
day.'6
The person selected was Pedro de Candia, the
Greek cavalier mentioned as one of the first who
intimated his intention to share the fortunes of his
commander.   He was sent on shore, dressed in
complete mail as became a good knight, with his
sword by his side, and his arquebuse on his shoulder.
The Indians were even more dazzled by his appearance than by Molina's, as the sun fell brightly
on his polished armour, and glanced from his military
weapons. They had heard much of the formidable
arquebuse from their townsmen who had come in
the vessel, and they besought Candia " to let it
speak to them." He accordingly set up a wooden
15 " Cerca del solia estar una de dar muestra de lo mucho que
fortaleza muy fuerte y de linda fue." Cieza de Leon, Cronica,
obra, hecha por los Yngas reyes cap. 4.
del Cuzco y sefores de todo el  16 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
Peru...... Ya esta el edificio - Herrera, Hist. General, loc. cit.
desta fortaleza muy gastado y -Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1,
deshecho: mas no para que dexe cap. 2.




278                 DISCOVERY     OF PERU.              [BooK II.
board as a target, and, taking deliberate aim, fired
off the musket. The flash of the powder and the
startling report of the piece, as the board, struck by
the ball, was shivered into splinters, filled the natives with dismay. Some fell on the ground, covering their faces with their hands, and others approached the cavalier with feelings of awe, which
were gradually dispelled by the assurance they received from the smiling expression of his countenance.17
They then showed him the same hospitable attentions which they had paid to Molina; and his
description of the marvels of the place, on his return, fell nothing short of his predecessors. The
fortress, which was surrounded by a triple row of
wall, was strongly garrisoned. The temple he described as literally tapestried with plates of gold and
silver. Adjoining this structure was a sort of con17 It is moreover stated that the  their shoulders to the temple.Indians, desirous to prove still This credible anecdote is repeated,
further the superhuman nature of  without the least qualification or
the Spanish cavalier, let loose on  distrust, by several contemporary
him a tiger — a jaguar probably-  writers.  (See Naharro, Relacion
which was caged in the royal for- Sumaria, MS. -   Herrera, Hist.
tress. But Don Pedro was a good   General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 5.Catholic, and he gently laid the  Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 54.cross which he wore round his Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte 2,
neck on the animal's back, who, lib. 1, cap. 12.)  This last author
instantly forgetting his ferocious may have had his version from
nature, crouched at the cavalier's Candia's own son, with whom he
feet, and began to play round him  tells us he was brought up at
in innocent gambols. The Indians, school. It will no doubt find as
now more amazed than ever, noth- easy admission with those of the
ing doubteu of the sanctity of their present day, who conceive that the
guest, and,ore him in triumph on  age of miracles has not yet past




CH. IV.]     BRILLIANT ASPECT OF TUMBEZ.                 279
vent appropriated to the Inca's destined brides, who
manifested great curiosity to see him. Whether
this was gratified is not clear; but Candia described
the gardens of the convent, which he entered, as
glowing with imitations of fruits and vegetables all
in pure gold and silver! s He had seen a number
of artisans at work, whose sole business seemed to
be to furnish these gorgeous decorations for the religious houses.
The reports of the cavalier may have been somewhat over-colored.'9 It was natural that men coming from the dreary wilderness, in which they had
been buried the last six months, should have been
vividly impressed by the tokens of civilization
which met them      on the Peruvian coast.        But Tumbez was a favorite city of the Peruvian princes. It
was the most important place on the northern borders of the empire, contiguous to the recent acquisition of Quito.      The   great Tupac Yupanqui had
s18 c Que habia visto un jardin the temple; though the veteran
donde las yerbas eran de oro imi- acknowledges that what was detando en un'todo a las naturales, ficient in Tumbez was more than
arboles con frutas de lo mismo, y  made up by the magnificence of
otras muchas cosas i este modo, other places in the empire not then
con que aficion6 grandemente a visited. " Lo cual fue mentira;
sus compaiieros a esta conquista." porque despues que  todos los
Montesinos, Annales, aiio 1527.  Espanoles entramos en ella, se vi6
19 The worthy knight's account por vista de ojos haber mentido en
does not seem to have found favor todo, salvo en lo del templo, que
with the old Conqueror, so often este era cosa de ver, aunque mucho
cited in these pages, who says, that, mas de lo que aquel encareci6, lo
when they afterwards visited Tum- que falto en esta ciudad, se hall6
bez, the Spaniards found Candia's despues en otras que muchas leguas
relation a lie from beginning to mas adelante se descubrieron."
end, except, indeed, in respect to Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




280             DISCOVERY OF PERU.         [BOOK II.
established a strong fortress there, and peopled it
with a colony of mitimaes. The temple, and the
house occupied by the Virgins of the Sun, had been
erected by Huayna Capac, and were liberally endowed by that Inca, after the sumptuous fashion of
the religious establishments of Peru. The town
was well supplied with water by numerous aqueducts, and the fruitful valley in which it was embosomed, and the ocean which bathed its shores,
supplied ample means of subsistence to a considerable population. But the cupidity of the Spaniards, after the Conquest, was not slow in despoiling
the place of its glories; and the site of its proud
towers and temples, in less than half a century after
that fatal period, was to be traced only by the huge
mass of ruins that encumbered the ground.20
The Spaniards were nearly mad with joy, says
an old writer, at receiving these brilliant tidings of
the Peruvian city. All their fond dreams were now
to be realized, and they had at length reached the
realm which had so long flitted in visionary splendor
before them. Pizarro expressed his gratitude to
Heaven for having crowned his labors with so glorious a result; but he bitterly lamented the hard fate
which, by depriving him of his followers, denied
him, at such a moment, the means of availing himself of his success. Yet he had no cause for lamen20 Cieza de Leon, who crossed had fallen on the Indian edifices,
this part of the country in 1548, which lay in ruin, even at that
mentions the wanton manner in early period. Cronica, cap. 67
which the hand of the Conqueror




CH. IV.]  DISCOVERIES ALONG THE COAST.     281
tation; and the devout Catholic saw.in this very
circumstance a providential interposition which prevented the attempt at conquest, while such attempts
would have been premature. Peru was not yet
torn asunder by the dissensions of rival candidates
for the throne; and, united and strong under the
sceptre of a warlike monarch, she might well have
bid defiance to all the forces that Pizarro could
muster. "( It was manifestly the work of Heaven,"
exclaims a devout son of the Church, " that the
natives of the country should have received him in
so kind and loving a spirit, as best fitted to facilitate the conquest; for it was the Lord's hand
which led him and his followers to this remote
region for the extension of the holy faith, and for
the salvation of souls." 21
Having now collected all the information essential
to his object, Pizarro, after taking leave of the natives of Tumbez, and promising a speedy return,
weighed anchor, and again turned his prow towards
the south.  Still keeping as near as possible to the
coast, that no place of importance might escape
his observation, he passed Cape Blanco, and, after
sailing about a degree and a half, made the port of
Payta. The inhabitants, who had notice of his approach, came out in their balsas to get sight of the
wonderful strangers, bringing with them stores of
21 " I si le recibiesen con amor, que el haverlos traido Dios era
hiciese su Mrd. lo que mas conve- para que su santa f4 se dilatase i
niente le pareciese al efecto de su aquellas almas se salvasen." Naconquista: porque tenia entendido, harro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.
VOL. I.        36




282           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BooK II.
fruits, fish, and vegetables, with the same hospitable
spirit shown by their countrymen at Tumbez.
After staying here a short time, and interchanging presents of trifling value with the natives, Pizarro continued his cruise; and, sailing by the sandy
plains of Sechura for an extent of near a hundred
miles, he doubled the Punta de Aguja, and swept
down the coast as it fell off towards the east, still
carried forward by light and somewhat variable
breezes. The weather now became unfavorable,
and the voyagers encountered a succession of heavy
gales, which drove them some distance out to sea,
and tossed them about for many days. But they
did not lose sight of the mighty ranges of the Andes, which, as they proceeded towards the south,
were still seen, at nearly the same distance from the
shore, rolling onwards, peak after peak, with their
stupendous surges of ice, like some vast ocean, that
had been suddenly arrested and frozen up in the
midst of its wild and tumultuous career. With this
landmark always in view, the navigator had little
need of star or compass to guide his bark on her
course.
As soon as the tempest had subsided, Pizarro
stood in again for the continent, touching at the
principal points as he coasted along. Everywhere
he was received with the same spirit of generous
hospitality; the natives coming out in their balsas to
welcome him, laden with their little cargoes of fruits
and vegetables, of all the luscious varieties that
grow in the tierra caliente. All were eager to have




LH. IV.]   DISCOVERIES ALONG THE COAST.          283
a glimpse of the strangers, the " Children of the
Sun," as the Spaniards began already to be called,
from their fair complexions, brilliant armour, and the
thunderbolts which they bore in their hands.22 The
most favorable reports, too, had preceded them, of
the urbanity and gentleness of their manners, thus
unlocking the hearts of the simple natives, and disposing them to confidence and kindness. The ironhearted soldier had not yet disclosed the darker
side of his character. He was too weak to do so
The hour of Conquest had not yet come.
In every place Pizarro received the same accounts
of a powerful monarch who ruled over the land,
and held his court on the mountain plains of the
interior, where his capital was depicted as blazing
with gold and silver, and displaying all the profusion
of an Oriental satrap. The Spaniards, except at
Tumbez, seem to have met with little of the precious metals among the natives on the coast. More
than one writer asserts that they did not covet
them, or, at least, by Pizarro's orders, affected not
to do so. He would not have them betray their
appetite for gold, and actually refused gifts when
they were proffered!23    It is more probable that
22 " Que resplandecian como el distant land! " Sin haver querido
Sol. Llamabanles hijos del Sol por recibir el oro, plata i perlas que les
esto." Montesinos, Annales, MS., ofrecieron, a fin de que conociesen
ano 1528.                  no era codicia, sino deseo de su
23 Pizarro wished the natives to bien el que les habia traido de tan
understand, says Father Naharro, lejas tierras a las suyas." Relathat their good alone, and not the cion Sumaria, MS.
love of gold, had led him to their




284            DISCOVERY OF PERU.      [BOOK II.
they saw little display of wealth, except in the
embellishments of the temples and other sacred
buildings, which they did not dare to violate. The
precious metals, reserved for the uses of religion and
for persons of high degree, were not likely to abound
in the remote towns and hamlets on the coast.
Yet the Spaniards met with sufficient evidence
of general civilization and power to convince them
that there was much foundation for the reports of
the natives. Repeatedly they saw structures of
stone and plaster, and occasionally showing archi —
tectural skill in the execution, if not elegance of
design. Wherever they cast anchor, they beheld
green patches of cultivated country redeemed from
the sterility of nature, and blooming with the variegated vegetation of the tropics; while a refined
system of irrigation, by means of aqueducts and
canals, seemed to be spread like a net-work over
the surface of the country, making even the desert
to blossom as the rose. At many places where they
landed they saw the great road of the Incas which
traversed the sea-coast, often, indeed, lost in the
volatile sands, where no road could be maintained,
but rising into a broad and substantial causeway, as
it emerged on a firmer soil. Such a provision for
internal communication was in itself no slight monument of power and civilization.
Still beating to the south, Pizarro passed the site
of the future flourishing city of Truxillo, founded by
himself some years later, and pressed on till he rode
off the port of Santa. It stood on the banks of a




CH. IV.]       RETURN TO PANAMA.               285
broad and beautiful stream; but the surrounding
country was so exceedingly arid that it was frequently selected as a burial-place by the Peruvians,
who found the soil most favorable for the preservation of their mummies. So numerous, indeed,
were the Indian guacas, that the place might rather be called the abode of the dead than of the living.24
Having reached this point, about the ninth degree of southern latitude, Pizarro's followers besought him not to prosecute the voyage farther.
Enough and more than enough had been done,
they said, to prove the existence and actual position of the great Indian empire of which they had
so long been in search. Yet, with their slender
force, they had no power to profit by the discovery. All that remained, therefore, was to return
and report the success of their enterprise to the
governor at Panama. Pizarro acquiesced in the
reasonableness of this demand. He had now penetrated nine degrees farther than any former navigator in these southern seas, and, instead of the blight
which, up to this hour, had seemed to hang over his
fortunes, he could now return in triumph to his
countrymen. Without hesitation, therefore, he pre24," Lo que mas me admiro, cubiertas de huessos de muertos.
quando passe por este valle, fue ver De manera que lo que ay en este
la muchedumbre que tienen de se- valle mas que ver, es las sepolturas
polturas: y que por todas las de los muertos, y los campos que
sierras y secadales en los altos del labraron siendo vivos." Cieza de
valle: ay numero grande de apar- Leon, Cronica, cap. 70.
tados, hechos a su usanga, todo




286           DISCOVERY OF PERU.       [BooK II.
pared to retrace his course, and stood again towards
the north.
On his way, he touched at several places where
he had before landed. At one of these, called by
the Spaniards Santa Cruz, he had been invited on
shore by an Indian woman of rank, and had promised to visit her on his return. No sooner did his
vessel cast anchor off the village where she lived,
than she came on board, followed by a numerous
train of attendants.  Pizarro received her with
every mark of respect, and on her departure presented her with some trinkets which had a real
value in the eyes of an Indian princess. She urged
the Spanish commander and his companions to return the visit, engaging to send a number of hostages on board, as security for their good treatment.
Pizarro assured her that the frank confidence she
had shown towards them proved that this was
unnecessary. Yet, no sooner did he put off in his
boat, the following day, to go on shore, than several
of the principal persons in the place came alongside of the ship to be received as hostages during
the absence of the Spaniards,- a singular proof of
consideration for the sensitive apprehensions of hei
guests.
Pizarro found that preparations had been made
for his reception in a style of simple hospitality that
evinced some degree of taste. Arbours were formed of luxuriant and wide-spreading branches, interwoven with fragrant flowers and shrubs that diffused
a delicious perfilme through the air. A banquet




CH. IV.]      RETURN TO PANAMA.          287
was provided, teeming with viands prepared in the
style of the Peruvian cookery, and with fruits and
vegetables of tempting hue and luscious to the taste,
though their names and nature were unknown to
the Spaniards. After the collation was ended, the
guests were entertained with music and dancing
by a troop of young men and maidens simply attired, who exhibited in their favorite national amusement all the agility and grace which the supple
limbs of the Peruvian Indians so well qualified them
to display. Before his departure, Pizarro stated to
his kind host the motives of his visit to the country, in the same manner as he had done on other
occasions, and he concluded by unfurling the royal
banner of Castile, which he had brought on shore,
requesting her and her attendants to raise it in
token of their allegiance to his sovereign. This
they did with great good-humor, laughing all the
while, says the chronicler, and making it clear that
they had a very imperfect conception of the serious
nature of the ceremony.  Pizarro was contented
with this outward display of loyalty, and returned
to his vessel well satisfied with the entertainment
he had received, and meditating, it may be, on the
best mode of repaying it, hereafter, by the subjugation and conversion of the country.
The Spanish commander did not omit to touch
also at Tumbez, on his homeward voyage. Here
some of his followers, won by the comfortable aspect
of the place and the manners of the people, intimated a wish to remain, conceiving, no doubt, that




288            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOK Ii.
it would be better to live where they would be
persons of consequence than to return to an obscure
condition in the community of Panama. One of
these men was Alonso de Molina, the same who had
first gone on shore at this place, and been captivated
by the charms of the Indian beauties.    Pizarro
complied with their wishes, thinking it would not be
amiss to find, on his return, some of his own followers who would be instructed in the language and
usages of the natives. He was also allowed to
carry back in his vessel two or three Peruvians, for
the similar purpose of instructing them in the Castilian. One of them, a youth named by the Spaniards Felipillo, plays a part of some importance in
the history of subsequent events.
On leaving Tumbez, the adventurers steered directly for Panama, touching only, on their way, at
the ill-fated island of Gorgona to take on board
their two companions who were left there too ill to
proceed with them. One had died, and, receiving
the other, Pizarro and his gallant little band continued their voyage; and, after an absence of at least
eighteen months, found themselves once more safely
riding at anchor in the harbour of Panama.25
The sensation caused by their arrival was great,
as might have been expected. For there were few,
even among the most sanguine of their friends, who
25 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. y Conq., MS. - Herrera, Hist.
- Montesinos, Annales, MS., ano General, dec. 4, lib. 2, cap. 6, 7
1528.- Naharro, Relacion Suma- - Relacion del Primer. Descub.,
ria, MS.- Pedro Pizarro, Descub. MS.




CH. IV.]      RETURN TO PANAMA.           289
did not imagine that they had long since paid for
their temerity, and fallen victims to the climate or
the natives, or miserably perished in a watery grave.
Their joy was proportionably great, therefore, as
they saw the wanderers now returned, not only in
health and safety, but with certain tidings of the
fair countries which had so long eluded their grasp.
It was a moment of proud satisfaction to the three
associates, who, in spite of obloquy, derision, and
every impediment which the distrust of friends or
the coldness of government could throw in their
way, had persevered in their great enterprise until
they had established the truth of what had beenr so
generally denounced as a chimera. It is the misfortune of those daring spirits who conceive an idea
too vast for their own generation to comprehend, or,
at least, to attempt to carry out, that they pass for
visionary dreamers. Such had been the fate of
Luque and his associates. The existence of a rich
Indian empire at the south, which, in their minds,
dwelling long on the same idea and alive to all the
arguments in its favor, had risen to the certainty
of conviction, had been derided by the rest of their
countrymen as a mere mirage of the fancy, which.
on nearer approach, would melt into air; while the
projectors, who staked their fortunes on the adven
ture, were denounced as madmen. But their hour
of triumph, their slow and hard-earned triumph,
had now arrived.
Yet the governor, Pedro de los Rios, did not
seem, even at this moment, to be possessed with a
VOL. I.       3F




290            DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [Boox II
conviction of the magnitude of the discovery, - or,
perhaps, he was discouraged by its very magnitude.
When the associates, now with more confidence,
applied to him for patronage in an undertaking too
vast for their individual resources, he coldly replied,
" He had no desire to build up other states at the
expense of his own; nor would he be led to throw
away more lives than had already been sacrificed by
the cheap display of gold and silver toys and a few
Indian sheep!,26
Sorely disheartened by this repulse from the only
quarter whence effectual aid could be expected, the
confederates, without funds, and with credit nearly
exhausted by their past efforts, were perplexed in
the extreme. Yet to stop now, - what was it but
to abandon the rich mine which their own industry
and perseverance had laid open, for others to work
at pleasure? In this extremity the fruitful mind of
Luque suggested the only expedient by which they
could hope for success. This was to apply to the
Crown itself. No one was so much interested in
the result of the expedition.  It was for the government, indeed, that discoveries were to be made, that
the country was to be conquered. The government
alone was competent to provide the requisite means,
and was likely to take a much broader and more
26 "No entendia de despoblar Hombres con la muestra de laa
su Governacion, para que se fuesen Ovejas, Oro, i Plata, que havian
a poblar nuevas Tierras, muriendo traido." Herrera, Hist. General,
en tal demanda mas, Gente de la dec. 4, lib 3, cap. 1.
que havia muerto, cebando i los




CH. IV.]      RETURN TO PANAMA.            291
liberal view of the matter than a petty colonial
officer.
But who was there qualified to take charge of this
delicate mission? Luque was chained by his professional duties to Panama; and his associates, unlettered soldiers, were much better fitted for the
business of the camp than of the court. Almagro,
blunt, though somewhat swelling and ostentatious in
his address, with a diminutive stature and a countenance naturally plain, now much disfigured by the
loss of an eye, was not so well qualified for the
mission as his companion in arms, who, possessing
a good person and altogether a commanding presence, was plausible, and, with all his defects of education, could, where deeply interested, be even eloquent in discourse. The ecclesiastic, however, suggested that the negotiation should be committed to
the Licentiate Corral, a respectable functionary,
then about to return on some public business to the
mother country. But to this Almagro strongly objected. No one, he said, could conduct the affair
so well as the party interested in it. He had a
high opinion of Pizarro's prudence, his discernment
of character, and his cool, deliberate policy.27 He
knew enough of his comrade to have confidence that
his presence of mind would not desert him, even in
the new, and therefore embarrassing, circumstances
in which he would be placed at court. No one, he
27 E por pura importunacion speto, 6 dese6 honrarle." Oviedo,
de Almagro cupole a Pizarro, por- Hist. de las Indias, MS,Parte 3
que siempre Almagro le tubo re- lib. 8, cap. 1.




~9~2       ~ DISCOVERY OF PERU.        [BOOK IL
said, could tell the story of their adventures with
such effect, as the man who had been the chief actor
in them. No one could so well paint the unparalleled sufferings and sacrifices which they had encountered; no other could tell so forcibly what had
been done, what yet remained to do, and what assistance would be necessary to carry it into execution. He concluded, with characteristic frankness,
by strongly urging his confederate to undertake the
mission.
Pizarro felt the force of Almagro's reasoning, and,
though with undisguised reluctance, acquiesced in a
measure which was less to his taste than an expedition to the wilderness. But Luque came into the
arrangement with more difficulty. " God grant, my
children," exclaimed the ecclesiastic, "that one of
you may not defraud the other of his blessing! "28
Pizarro engaged to consult the interests of his associates equally with his own. But Luque, it is clear,
did not trust Pizarro.
There was some difficulty in raising the funds
necessary for putting the envoy in condition to make
a suitable appearance at court; so low had the
credit of the confederates fallen, and so little confidence was yet placed in the result of their splendid
discoveries. Fifteen hundred ducats were at length
raised; and Pizarro, in the spring of 1528, bade
adieu to Panama, accompanied by Pedro de Can
a8 (" Plegue a Dios, Hijos, que a lo menos fuerades entrambos."
no os hurteis la bendicion el uno al Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 4,
otro, que yo todavia holgaria, que lib. 3, cap. 1.




CH. IV.]         GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.                    293
dia.29   He took with him, also, some of the natives,
as well as two or three llamas, various nice fabrics
oif cloth, with many ornaments and vases of gold
aad   silver, as specimens of the civilization of the
country, and vouchers for his wonderful story.
29 "Juntaronle mil y quinientos Montesinos, Annales, MS., afo
pesos de oro, que di6 de buena 1528.
voluntad Dn Fernando de Luque."
Of all the writers on ancient Peruvian history, no one has acquired
so wide celebrity, or been so largely referred to by later compilers, as
the Inca Garcilasso de la Vega. He was born at Cuzco, in 1540; and
was a mestizo, that is, of mixed descent, his father being European, and
his mother Indian. His father, Garcilasso de la Vega, was one of that
illustrious family whose achievements, both in arms and letters, shed
such lustre over the proudest period of the Castilian annals. He came
to Peru, in the suite of Pedro de Alvarado, soon after the country had
been gained by Pizarro. Garcilasso attached himself to the fortunes
of this chief, and, after his death, to those of his brother Gonzalo, -remaining constant to the latter, through his rebellion, up to the hour of
his rout at Xaquixaguana, when Garcilasso took the same course with
most of his faction, and passed over to the enemy. But this demonstration of loyalty, though it saved his life, was too late to redeem his
credit with the victorious party; and the obloquy which he incurred by
his share in the rebellion threw a cloud over his subsequent fortunes,
and even over those of his son, as it appears, in after years.
The historian's mother was of the Peruvian blood royal. She was
niece of Huayna Capac, and granddaughter of the renowned Tupac Inca
Yupanqui. Garcilasso, while he betrays obvious satisfaction that the
blood of the civilized European flows in his veins, shows himself not a
little proud of his descent from the royal dynasty of Peru; and this he
intimated by combining with his patronymic the distinguishing title of
the Peruvian princes, -subscribing himself always Garcilasso Inca de
la Vega.
His early years were passed in his native land, where he was reared
in the Roman Catholic faith, and received the benefit of as good an
education as could be obtained amidst the incessant din of arms and




294              GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.               [Boox II.
civil commotion. In 1560, when twenty years of age, he left America,
and from that time took up his residence in Spain. Here he entered
the military service, and held a captain's commission in the war against
the Moriscos, and, afterwards, under Don John of Austria. Though
he acquitted himself honorably in his adventurous career, he does not
seem to have been satisfied with the manner in which his services were
requited by the government. The old reproach of the father's disloyalty still clung to the son, and Garcilasso assures us that this circumstance defeated all his efforts to recover the large inheritance of
landed property belonging to his mother, which had escheated to the
Crown. " Such were the prejudices against me," says he, " that I
could not urge my ancient claims or expectations; and I left the army
so poor and so much in debt, that I did not care to show myself again
at court; but was obliged to withdraw into an obscure solitude, where
I lead a tranquil life for the brief space that remains to me, no longer
deluded by the world or its vanities."
The scene of this obscure retreat was not, however, as the reader
might imagine from this tone of philosophic resignation, in the depths
of some rural wilderness, but in Cordova, once the gay capital of
Moslem science, and still the busy haunt of men. Here our philosopher
occupied himself with literary labors, the more sweet and soothing to
his wounded spirit, that they tended to illustrate the faded glories of
his native land, and exhibit them in their primitive splendor to the eyes
of his adopted countrymen. " And I have no reason to regret," he
says in his Preface to his account of Florida, " that Fortune has not
smiled on me, since this circumstance has opened a literary career
which, I trust, will secure to me a wider and more enduring fame than
could flow from any worldly prosperity."
In 1609, he gave to the world the First Part of his great work, the
Commentario Reales, devoted to the history of the country under the
Incas; and in 1616, a few months before his death, he finished the
Second Part, embracing the story of the Conquest, which was published
at Cordova the following year. The chronicler, who thus closed his
labors with his life, died at the ripe old age of seventy-six. He left a
considerable sum for the purchase of masses for his soul, showing that
the complaints of his poverty are not to be taken literally. His remains
were interred in the cathedral church of Cordova, in a chapel which
bears the name of Garcilasso; and an inscription was placed on his
monument, intimating the high respect in which the historian was held
both for his moral worth and his literary attainments.
The First Part of the Commentarios Reales is occupied, as already
noticed, with the ancient history of the country, presenting a complete picture of its civilization under the Incas, - far more complete




CIl. IV.]        GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.                   295
than has been given by any other writer. Garcilasso's mother was but
ten years old at the time of her cousin Atahuallpa's accession, or rather
usurpation, as it is called by the party of Cuzco. She had the good
fortune to escape the massacre which, according to the chronicler, befell
most of her kindred, and with her brother continued to reside in their
ancient capital after the Conquest. Their conversations naturally turned
to the good old times of the Inca rule, which, colored by their fond
regrets, may be presumed to have lost nothing as seen through the
magnifying medium of the past. The young Garcilasso listened greedily to the stories which recounted the magnificence and prowess of his
royal ancestors, and though he made no use of them at the time, they
sunk deep into his memory, to be treasured up for a future occasion.
When he prepared, after the lapse of many years, in his retirement at
Cordova, to compose the history of his country, he wrote to his old
companions and schoolfellows, of the Inca family, to obtain fuller
information than he could get in Spain on various matters of historical interest. He had witnessed in his youth the ancient ceremonies
and usages of his countrymen, understood the science of their quipus,
and mastered many of their primitive traditions. With the assistance
he now obtained from his Peruvian kindred, he acquired a familiarity
with the history of the great Inca race, and of their national institutions, to an extent that no person could have possessed, unless educated
in the midst of them, speaking the same language, and with the same
Indian blood flowing in his veins. Garcilasso, in short, was the representative of the conquered race; and we might expect to find the lights
and shadows of the picture disposed under his pencil, so as to produce
an effect very different from that which they had hitherto exhibited
under the hands of the Conquerors.
Such, to a certain extent, is the fact; and this circumstance affords a
means of comparison which would alone render his works of great value
in arriving at just historic conclusions. But Garcilasso wrote late in
life, after the story had been often told by Castilian writers. He naturally defeYred much to men, some of whom enjoyed high credit on the
score both of their scholarship and their social position. His object, he
professes, was not so much to add any thing new of his own, as to correct their errors and the misconceptions into which they had been brought
by their ignorance of the Indian languages and the usages of his people.
He does, in fact, however, go far beyond this; and the stores of information which he has collected have made his work a large repository, whence later laborers in the same field have drawn copious materials. He writes from the fulness of his heart, and illuminates every
topic that he touches with a variety and richness of illustration, that
leave little to be desired by the most importunate curiosity. The




296              GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.               [BOOK 11.
difference between reading his Commentaries and the accounts of Euro
pean writers is the difference that exists between reading a work in the
original and in a bald translation. Garcilasso's writings are an emanation from the Indian mind.
Yet his Commentaries are open to a grave objection, —and one
naturally suggested by his position. Addressing himself to the cultivated European, he was most desirous to display the ancient glories of
his people, and still more of the Inca race, in their most imposing form.
This, doubtless, was the great spur to his literary labors, for which
previous education, however good for the evil time on which he was
cast, had far from qualified him. Garcilasso, therefore, wrote to effect a
particular object. He stood forth as counsel for his unfortunate countrymen, pleading the cause of that degraded race before the tribunal of
posterity.  The exaggerated tone of panegyric consequent on this
becomes apparent in every page of his work. He pictures forth a state
of society, such as an Utopian philosopher would hardly venture to
depict. His royal ancestors became the types of every imaginary excellence, and the golden age is revived for a nation, which, while the
war of proselytism is raging on its borders, enjoys within all the blessings of tranquillity and peace. Even the material splendors of the
monarchy, sufficiently great in this land of gold, become heightened,
under the glowing imagination of the Inca chronicler, into the gorgeous
illusions of a fairy tale.
Yet there is truth at the bottom of his wildest conceptions, and it
would be unfair to the Indian historian to suppose that he did not himself believe most of the magic marvels which he describes. There is
no credulity like that of a Christian convert, - one newly converted to
the faith. From long dwelling in the darkness of paganism, his eyes,
when first opened to the light of truth, have not acquired the power of
discriminating the just proportions of objects, of distinguishing between
the real and the imaginary. Garcilasso was not a convert, indeed, for
he was bred from infancy in the Roman Catholic faith. But he was
surrounded by converts and neophytes,- by those of his own blood,
who, after practising all their lives the rites of paganism, were now first
admitted into the Christian fold. He listened to the teachings of the
missionary, learned from him to give implicit credit to the marvellous
legends of the Saints, and the no less marvellous accounts of his own
victories in his spiritual warfare for the propagation of the faith. Thus
early accustomed to such large drafts on his credulity, his reason lost
its heavenly power of distinguishing truth from error,' and he became
so familiar with the miraculous, that the miraculous was no longer a
miracle.
Yet, while large deductions are to be made on this account from the




CH. IV.]         GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.                   297
chronicler's reports, there is always a germ of truth which it is not
difficult to detect, and even to disengage from the fanciful covering
which envelopes it; and after every allowance for the exaggerations of
national vanity, we shall find an abundance of genuine information in
respect to the antiquities of his country, for which we shall look in
vain in any European writer.
Garcilasso's work is the reflection of the age in which he lilted. It
is addressed to the imagination, more than to sober reason. We
are dazzled by the gorgeous spectacle it perpetually exhibits, and delighted by the variety of amusing details and animated gossip sprinkled
over its pages. The story of the action is perpetually varied by discussions on topics illustrating its progress, so as to break up the monotony of the narrative, and afford an agreeable relief to the reader.
This is true of the First Part of his great work. In the Second there
was no longer room for such discussion. But he has supplied the place
by garrulous reminiscences, personal anecdotes, incidental adventures,
and a host of trivial details, - trivial in the eyes of the pedant, - which
historians have been too willing to discard, as below the dignity of
history. We have the actors in this great drama in their private dress,
become acquainted with their personal habits, listen to their familiar
sayings, and, in short, gather up those minutiae which in the aggregate
make up so much of life, and not less of chlaracter.
It is this confusion of the great and the little, thus artlessly blended
together, that constitutes one of the charms of the old' romantic chronicle,- not the less true that, in this respect, it approaches nearer to
the usual tone of romance. It is in such writings that we may look to
find the form and pressure of the age. The worm-eaten state-papers,
official correspondence, public records, are all serviceable, indispensable,
to history.  They are the framework on which it is to repose; the
skeleton of facts which gives it its strength and proportions. But they
are as worthless as the dry bones of the skeleton, unless clothed with
the beautiful form and garb of humanity, and instinct with the spirit of
the age.- Our debt is large to the antiquarian, who with conscientious
precision lays broad and deep the foundations of historic truth; and no
less to the philosophic annalist who exhibits man in the dress of public
life, — man in masquerade; but our gratitude must surely not be withheld from those, who, like Garcilasso de la Vega, and many a romancer
of the Middle Ages, have held up the mirror - distorted though it may
somewhat be - to the inferior of life, reflecting every object, the great
and the mean, the beautiful and the deformed, with their natural prominence and their vivacity of coloring, to the eye of the spectator. As a
work of art, such a production may be thought to be below criticism.
But, although it defy the rules of art in its composition, it does not
VOL. I.             38




298              GARCILASSO DE LA VEGA.               [BOOK II
necessarily violate the principles of taste; for it conforms in its spirit to
the spirit of the age in which it was written. And the critic, who
coldly condemns it on the severe principles of art, will find a charm in
its very simplicity, that will make him recur again and again to its
pages, while more correct and classical compositions are laid aside and
forgotten.
I cannot dismiss this notice of Garcilasso, though already long protracted, without some allusion to the English translation of his Commentaries. It appeared in James the Second's reign, and is the work
of Sir Paul Rycaut, Knight. It was printed at London, in 1688, in
folio, with considerable pretension in its outward dress, well garnished
with wood-cuts, and a frontispiece displaying the gaunt and rather sardonic features, not of the author, but his translator. The version keeps
pace with the march of the original, corresponding precisely in books
and chapters, and seldom, though sometimes, using the freedom, so
common in these ancient versions, of abridgment and omission. Where
it does depart from the original, it is rather from ignorance than intention. Indeed, as far as the plea of ignorance will avail him, the worthy
knight may urge it stoutly in his defence. No one who reads the book
will doubt his limited acquaintance with his own tongue, and no one
who compares it with the original will deny his ignorance of the Castilian. It contains as many blunders as paragraphs, and most of them
such as might shame a schoolboy. Yet such are the rude charms of
the original, that this ruder version of it has found considerable favor
with readers; and Sir Paul Rycaut's translation, old as it is, may still
be met with in many a private, as well as public library.




BOOK THIRD)
CONQUEST OF PERU.








BOOK III.
CONQUEST OF PERU.
CHAPTER 1.
PIZARRO's RECEPTION AT COURT. - HI CAPITULATION, WITH THB
CROWN. - HE VISITS HIS BIRTHPLACE. -RETURNS TO THE NEW
WORLD. - DIFFICULTIES WITH ALMAGRO. - HIS THIRD EXPEdITION. - ADVENTURES ON THE COAST. - BATTLES IN THE ISLE
OF PUNI.
1528-1531.
PIZARRO and his officer, having crossed the Isthmus, embarked at Nombre de Dios for the old
country, and, after a good passage, reached Seville
early in the summer of 1528. There happened to
be at that time in port a person well known in the
history of Spanish adventure as the Bachelor Enciso. He had taken an active part in the colonization of Tierra Firme, and had a pecuniary claim
against the early colonists of Darien, of whom
Pizarro was one. Immediately on the landing of
the latter, he was seized by Enciso's orders, and
held in custody for the debt. Pizarro, who had fled
from his native land as a forlorn and houseless ad



302            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BooK III
venturer, after an absence of more than twenty
years, passed, most of them, in unprecedented toil
and suffering, now found himself on his return the
inmate of a prison. Such was the commencement
of those brilliant fortunes which, as he had trusted,
awaited him at home.   The circumstance excited
general indignation; and no sooner was the Court
advised of his arrival in the country, and the great
purpose of his mission, than orders were sent for
his release, with permission to proceed at once on
his journey.
Pizarro found the emperor at Toledo, which he
was soon to quit, in order to embark for Italy.
Spain was not the favorite residence of Charles the
Fifth, in the earlier part of his reign. He was
now at that period of it when he was enjoying
the full flush of his triumphs over his gallant rival
of France, whom he had defeated and taken prisoner at the great battle of Pavia; and the victor
was at this moment preparing to pass into Italy to
receive the imperial crown from the hands of the
Roman Pontiff. Elated by his successes and his
elevation to the German throne, Charles made little
account of his hereditary kingdom, as his ambition
found so splendid a career thrown open to it on
the wide field of European politics. He had hitherto received too inconsiderable returns from his transatlantic possessions to give them the attention they
deserved. But, as the recent acquisition of Mexico and the brilliant anticipations in respect to the
southern continent were pressed upon his notice,




tH. I.]  PIZARRO'S RECEPTION AT COURT.    303
he felt their importance as likely to afford him the
means of prosecuting his ambitious and most expensive enterprises.
Pizarro, therefore, who had now come to satisfy
the royal eyes, by visible proofs, of the truth of the
golden rumors which, from time to time, had reached Castile, was graciously received by the emperor.
Charles examined the various objects which his
officer exhibited to him with great attention. He
was particularly interested by the appearance of the
llama, so remarkable as the only beast of burden yet
known on the new continent; and the fine fabrics
of woollen cloth, which were made from its shaggy
sides, gave it a much higher value, in the eyes of
the sagacious monarch, than what it possessed as
an animal for domestic labor. But the specimens
of gold and silver manufacture, and the wonderful
tale which Pizarro had to tell of the abundance of
the precious metals, must have satisfied even the
cravings of royal cupidity.
Pizarro, far from being embarrassed by the novelty of his situation, maintained his usual selfpossession, and showed that decorum and even dignity in his address which belong to the Castilian.
He spoke in a simple and respectful style, but with
the earnestness and natural eloquence of one who
had been an actor in the scenes he described, and
who was conscious that the impression he made
on his audience was to decide his future destiny.
All listened with eagerness to the account of his
strange adventures by sea and land, his wander



304              CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK Ill.
ings in the forests, or in the dismal and pestilent
swamps on the sea-coast, without food, almost without raiment, with feet torn and bleeding at every
step, with his few companions becoming still fewer
by disease and death, and yet pressing on with unconquerable spirit to extend the empire of Castile,
and the name and power of her sovereign; but
when he painted his lonely condition on the desolate island, abandoned by the government at home,
deserted by all but a handful of devoted followers,
his royal auditor, though not easily moved, was
affected to tears. On his departure from Toledo,
Charles commended the affairs of his vassal in the
most favorable terms to the consideration of the
Council of the Indies.'
There was at this time another man at court,
who had come there on a similar errand from the
New World, but whose splendid achievements had
already won for him a name that threw the rising
reputation of Pizarro comparatively into the shade.
This man was Hernando Cortes, the Conqueror of
Mexico. He had come home to lay an empire at
the feet of his sovereign, and to demand in return
the redress of his wrongs, and the recompense of his
I Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y mucho gusto, tratolo amoroso, y
Conq., MS. —Naharro, Relacion oyole tierno, especialmente cuando
Sumaria, MS. - Conq. i Pob. del le hizo relacion de su consistencia
Piru, MS.                  y de los trece compaferos en la
" Hablaba tan bien en la mate- Isla en medio de tantos trabajos."
ria, que se llev6 los aplausos y Montesinos, Annales, MS., aio
atencion en Toledo donde el Em- 1528.
perador estaba diole audiencia con




CH. I.]  HIS CAPITULATION WITH THE CROWN.  305
great services. He was at the close of his career,
as Pizarro was at the commencement of his; the
Conqueror of the North and of the South; the two
men appointed by Providence to overturn the most
potent of the Indian dynasties, and to open the
golden gates by which the treasures of the New
World were to pass into the coffers of Spain.
Notwithstanding the emperor's recommendation,
the business of Pizarro went forward at the tardy
pace with which affairs are usually conducted in the
court of Castile. He found his limited means gradually sinking under the expenses incurred by his
present situation, and he represented, that, unless
some measures were speedily taken in reference to
his suit, however favorable they might be in the
end, he should be in no condition to profit by them.
The queen, accordingly, who had charge of the
business, on her husband's departure, expedited the
affair, and on the twenty-sixth of July, 1529, she
executed the memorable Capitulation, which defined
the powers and privileges of Pizarro.
The instrument secured to that chief the right
of discovery and conquest in the province of Peru,
or New Castile, —as the country was then called, in
the same manner as Mexico had received the name
of New Spain,-for the distance of two hundred
leagues south of Santiago. He was to receive the
titles and rank of Governor and Captain-General
of the province, together with those of Adelantado,
and Alguacil Mayor, for life; and he was to have a
salary of seven hundred and twenty-five thousand
VOL. I.        39




306            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [Booi III.
maravedis, with the obligation of maintaining certain officers and military retainers, corresponding
with the dignity of his station.  He was to have
the right to erect certain fortresses, with the absolute government of them; to assign encomiendas
of Indians, under the limitations prescribed by law;
and, in fine, to exercise nearly all the prerogatives
incident to the authority of a viceroy.
His associate, Almagro, was declared commander
of the fortress of Tumbcz, with an annual rent of
three hundred thousand maravedis, and with the
further rank and privileges of an hidalgo.  The
reverend Father Luque received the reward of his
services in the Bishopric of Tumbez, and he was
also declared Protector of the Indians of Peru.  He
was to enjoy the yearly stipend of a thousand ducats,-to be derived, like the other salaries and
gratuities in this instrument, from the revenues of
the conquered territory.
Nor were the subordinate actors in the expedition forgotten.  Ruiz received the title of Grand
Pilot of the Southern Ocean, with a liberal provision; Candia was placed at the head of the artillery; and the remaining eleven companions on the
desolate island were created hidalgos and cavalleros, and raised to certain municipal dignities, - in
prospect.
Several provisions of a liberal tenor were also
made, to encourage emigration to the country. The
new settlers were to be exempted from some of the
most onerous, but customary taxes, as the alcabala,




CH. I.]  HIS CAPITULATION WITH TIlE CROWN.     307
or to be subject to them only in a mitigated form.
The tax on the precious metals drawn from mines
was to be reduced, at first, to one tenth, instead of
the fifth imposed on the same metals when obtained by barter or by rapine.
It was expressly enjoined on Pizarro to observe
the existing regulations for the good government and
protection of the natives; and he was required to
carry Qut with him a specified number of ecclesiastics, with whom he was to take counsel in the conquest of the country, and whose efforts were to be
dedicated to the service and conversion of the Indians; while lawyers and attorneys, on the other
hand, whose presence was considered as boding ill
to the harmony of the new settlements, were strictly prohibited from setting foot in them.
Pizarro, on his part, was bound, in six months
from the date of the instrument, to raise a force,
well equipped for the service, of two hundred and
fifty men, of whom one hundred might be drawn
from the colonies; and the government engaged to
furnish some trifling assistance in the purchase of
artillery and military stores. Finally, he was to
be prepared, in six months after his return to Panama, to leave that port and embark on his expedition.2
2 This remarkable document, Martin Fernandez de Navarrete,
formerly in the archives of Siman- to whose kindness I am indebted
cas, and now transferred to the for a copy of it. - It will be found
Archivo General de las Indias in printed entire, in the original, in
Seville, was transcribed for the Appendix, No. 7.
rich collection of the late Don




308            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
Such are some of the principal provisions of this
Capitulation, by which the Castilian government,
with the sagacious policy which it usually pursued
on the like occasions, stimulated the ambitious hopes
of the adventurer by high-sounding titles, and liberal promises of reward contingent on his success,
but took care to stake nothing itself on the issue of
the enterprise.  It was careful to reap the fruits of
his toil, but not to pay the cost of them.
A circumstance, that could not fail to be remarked
in these provisions, was the manner in which the
high and lucrative posts were accumulated on Pizarro, to the exclusion of Almagro, who, if he had
not taken as conspicuous a part in personal toil and
exposure, had, at least, divided with him the original burden of the enterprise, and, by his labors in
another direction, had contributed quite as essentially to its success.  Almagro had willingly conceded the post of honor to his confederate; but it
had been stipulated, on Pizarro's departure for
Spain, that, while he solicited the office of Governor and Captain-General for himself, he should secure that of Adelantado for his companion. In like
manner, he had engaged to apply for the see of
Tumbez for the vicar of Panama, and the office of
Alguacil Mayor for the pilot Ruiz. The bishopric
took the direction that was concerted, for the soldier could scarcely claim the mitre of the prelate;
but the other offices, instead of their appropriate
distribution, were all concentred in himself.  Yet
it was in reference to his application for his friends,




Ci. I.]   HIS CAPITULATION      WITH THE CROWN.           309
that Pizarro    had   promised on his departure to deal
fairly and honorably by them        all.3
It is stated by the military chronicler, Pedro Pizarro, that his kinsman did, in fact, urge the suit
strongly in behalf of Almagro; but that he was refused by the government, on the ground            that offices
of such    paramount importance         could  not be committed   to  different individuals.      The   ill effects of
such an arrangement had been long since felt in
more than one of the Indian colonies, where it had
led to rivalry and fatal collision.4      Pizarro, therefore,
finding his remonstrances unheeded, had no alternative but to combine the offices in his own person,
or to see the expedition fall to the ground. This
explanation of the affair has not received the sanction of other contemporary historians. The apprehensions expressed by Luque, at the time of Pizarro's assuming the mission, of some such result
3 " Al fin se capitulo, que Fran- compaiieros ya dicho, y en el concisco Picarro negociase la Gover- sejo se le rrespondio que no avia
nacion para si: i para Diego de lugar de dar governacion a dos
Almagro, el Adelantamiento: i comparieros, a caussa de que en
para Hernando de Luque, el Obis- santa marta se avia dado ansi a dos
pado: i para Bartolom6 Ruiz, el compalieros y el uno avia muerto
Alguacilazgo Maior: i Mercedes al otro......Pues pedido, como
para los que quedaban vivos, de los digo, muchas vezes por don Frantrece Compaieros, afirmando siem- cisco Pizarro se les hiziese la merpre Francisco Picarro, que todo lo ced a ambos companeros, se le rresqueIia para ellos, i prometiendo, pondio la pidiesse parassi sino que
que negociaria lealmente, i sin se daria a otro, y visto que no avia
ninguna cautela."  Herrera, Hist. lugar lo que pedia y queria pedio
General, dec. 4, lib. 3, cap. 1.  se le hiziese la merced a el, y ansi
4 " Y  don Francisco Picarro  se le hizo."  Descub. y Conq.,
pidio conforme a lo que llevava MS.
capitulado y hordenado con sus




310             CONQUEST OF PERU.          [BOOK III.
as actually occurred, founded, doubtless, on a knowledge of his associate's character, may warrant us in
distrusting the alleged vindication of his conduct,
and our distrust will not be diminished by familiarity with his subsequent career.  Pizarro's virtue was
not of a kind to withstand temptation, - though of
a much weaker sort than that now     thrown in his
path.
The fortunate cavalier was also honored with the
habit of St. Jago;5 and he was authorized to make
an important innovation in his family escutcheon, -
for by the father's side he might claim his armorial
bearings.  The black eagle and the two pillars emblazoned on the royal arms were incorporated with
those of the Pizarros; and an Indian city, with a
vessel in the distance on the waters, and the llama
of Peru, revealed the theatre and the character of
his exploits; while the legend announced, that
"under the auspices of Charles, and by the industry, the genius, and the resources of Pizarro, the
country had been discovered and reduced to tranquillity," -thus modestly intimating both the past
and prospective services of the Conqueror.6
These arrangements having been thus completed
to Pizarro's satisfaction, he left Toledo for Truxillo,
his native place, in Estremadura, where he thought
5 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap.  6 " Caroli Casaris auspicio, et
Barcia, tom. III. p. 182. —Oviedo, labore, ingenio, ac impensa DuHist. de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, cis Pizarro inventa, et pacata."
lib. 8, cap. 1. —Caro de Torres, Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 4,
Historia de las Ordenes Militares, lib. 6, cap. 5.
(ed. Madrid, 1629,) p. 113.




CxI. I.]   HE VISITS HIS BIRTHPLACE.      311
he should be most likely to meet with adherents for
his new enterprise, and where it doubtless gratified his vanity to display himself in the palmy, or
at least promising, state of his present circum
stances. If vanity be ever pardonable, it is certainly in a man who, born in an obscure station
in life, without family, interest, or friends to back
him, has carved out his own fortunes in the world,
and, by his own resources, triumphed over all the
obstacles which nature and accident had thrown in
his way. Such was the condition of Pizarro, as he
now revisited the place of his nativity, where he
had hitherto been known only as a poor outcast,
without a home to shelter, a father to own him, or a
friend to lean upon. But he now found both friends
and followers, and some who were eager to claim
kindred with him, and take part in his future fortunes. Among these were four brothers. Three of
them, like himself, were illegitimate; one of whom,
named Francisco Martin de Alcantara, was related
to him by the mother's side; the other two, named
Gonzalo and Juan Pizarro, were descended from the
father. "They were all poor, and proud as they
were poor," says Oviedo, who had seen them; " and
their eagerness for gain was in proportion to their
poverty.5I 7
The remaining and eldest brother, named Hernando, was a legitimate son, - "' legitimate," con7 " Trujo tres o cuatro hermanos alcanzarla." Hist. de las Indias,
suyos tan soberbios como pobres, 6 MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 1.
tan sin hacienda como deseosos de




312               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BooK III.
tinues the same caustic authority, " by his pride, as
well as by his birth."       His features were     plain,
even disagreeably so; but his figure was good.       He
was large of stature, and, like his brother Francis,
had   on the whole an imposing presence.8         In his
character, he combined some of the worst defects
incident to the Castilian. He was jealous in the
extreme; impatient not merely of affront, but of
the least slight, and implacable in his resentment.
He was decisive in his measures, and unscrupulous
in their execution.    No touch of pity had power to
arrest his arm.    His arrogance was such, that he
was constantly wounding the self-love of those with
whom he acted; thus begetting an ill-will which
unnecessarily multiplied obstacles in his path. In
this he   differed  from  his brother Francis, whose
plausible manners smoothed away difficulties, and
conciliated confidence and cooperation in his enterprises. Unfortunately, the evil counsels of Hernando
exercised an influence over his brother which more
than compensated the advantages derived from his
singular capacity for business.
Notwithstanding the general interest which Pizarro's adventures excited in his country, that chief
8 Oviedo's portrait of him is by nariz con sobrada came 6 encendino means flattering. He writes like da, y este fue el desavenidor y
one too familiar with the original. estorbador del sosiego de todos y
" E de todos ellos el Hernando en especial de los dos viejos comPizarro solo era legitimo, 6 mas paneros Francisco Pizarro e Diego
legitimado en la soberbia, hombre de Almagro." Hist. de las Indias,
de alta estatura 6 grueso, la lengua MS., ubi supra.
e labios gordos, 6 la punta de la




CH. I.]   RETURNS TO THE NEW WORLD.       313
did not find it easy to comply with the provisions
of the Capitulation in respect to the amount of his
levies. Those who were most astonished by his
narrative were not always most inclined to take part
in his fortunes. They shrunk from the unparalleled
hardships which lay in the path of the adventurer
in that direction; and they listened with visible
distrust to the gorgeous pictures of the golden temples and gardens of Tumbez, which they looked
upon as indebted in some degree, at least, to the
coloring of his fancy, with the obvious purpose of
attracting followers to his banner. It is even said
that Pizarro would have found it difficult to raise
the necessary funds, but for the seasonable aid of
Cortes, a native of Estremadura like himself, his
companion in arms in early days, and, according to
report, his kinsman.9 No one was in a better condition to hold out a helping hand to a brother adventurer, and, probably, no one felt greater sympathy in Pizarro's fortunes, or greater confidence in
his eventual success, than the man who had so
lately trod the same career with renown.
The six months allowed by the Capitulation had
elapsed, and Pizarro had assembled somewhat less
than his stipulated complement of men, with which
he was preparing to embark in a little squadron
of three vessels at Seville; but, before they were
wholly ready, he received intelligence that the officers of the Council of the Indies proposed to in9 Pizarro y Orellana, Varones Ilustres, p. 143.
VOL. I.        40




314            CONQUEST OF PERU.       rBooK III.
quire into the condition of the vessels, and ascertain
how far the requisitions had been complied with.
Without loss of time, therefore, Pizarro, afraid,
if the facts were known, that his enterprise might
be nipped in the bud, slipped his cables, and crossing the bar of San Lucar, in January, 1530, stood
for the isle of Gomera, -one of the Canaries,where he ordered his brother Hernando, who had
charge of the remaining vessels, to meet him.
Scarcely had he gone, before the officers arrived
to institute the search. But when they objected the
deficiency of' men, they were easily - perhaps willingly - deceived by the pretext that the remainder
had gone forward in the vessel with Pizarro. At all
events, no further obstacles were thrown in Hernando's way, and he was permitted, with the rest
of the squadron, to join his brother, according to
agreement, at Gomera.
After a prosperous voyage, the adventurers reached the northern coast of the great southern continent, and anchored off the port of Santa Marta.
Here they received such discouraging reports of the
countries to which they were bound, of forests teeming with insects and venomous serpents, of huge
alligators that swarmed on the banks of the streams,
and of hardships and perils such as their own fears
had never painted, that several of Pizarro's men deserted; and their leader, thinking it no longer safe
to abide in such treacherous quarters, set sail at
once for Nombre de Dios.
Soon after his arrival there, he was met by his




C.. I.]    DIFFICULTIES WITH ALMAGRO.     315
two associates, Luque and Almagro, who had cross —
ed the mountains for the purpose of hearing from
his own lips the precise import of the capitulation
with the Crown. Great, as might have been ex
pected, was Almagro's discontent at learning the
result of what he regarded as the perfidious machinations of his associate.  " Is it thus," he exclaimed, " that you have dealt with the friend
who shared equally with you in the trials, the
dangers, and the cost of the enterprise; and this,
notwithstanding your solemn engagements on your
departure to provide for his interests as faithfully
as your own? How     could you allow me to be
thus dishonored in the eyes of the world by so
paltry a compensation, which seems to estimate
my services as nothing in comparison with your
own??? 10
Pizarro, in reply, assured his companion that he
had faithfully urged his suit, but that the government refused to confide powers which intrenched so
closely on one another to different hands. He had
no alternative, but to accept all himself or to decline
all; and he endeavoured to mitigate Almagro's displeasure by representing that the country was large
enough for the ambition of both, and that the
powers conferred on himself were, in fact, conferred
on Almagro, since all that he had would ever be
at his friend's disposal, as if it were his own. But
these honeyed words did not satisfy the injured
10 Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 4, lib. 7, cap. 9. —Pedro Pizarro,
Descub. y Conq., MS.




316           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
party; and the two captains soon after returned to
Panama with feelings of estrangement, if not hostility, towards one another, which did not augur well
for their enterprise.
Still, Almagro was of a generous temper, and
might have been appeased by the politic concessions
of his rival, but for the interference of Hernando Pizarro, who, from the first hour of their meeting,
showed little respect for the veteran, which, indeed,
the diminutive person of the latter was not calculated to inspire, and who now regarded him with
particular aversion as an impediment to the career
of his brother.
Almagro's friends - and his frank and liberal
manners had secured him many —were no less
disgusted than himself with the overbearing conduct
of this new ally. They loudly complained that it
was quite enough to suffer from the perfidy of Pizarro, without being exposed to the insults of his
family, who had now come over with him to fatten
on the spoils of conquest which belonged to their
leader.  The rupture soon proceeded to such a
length, that Almagro avowed his intention to prosecute the expedition without further cooperation
with his partner, and actually entered into negotiations for the purchase of vessels for that object.
But Luque, and the Licentiate Espinosa, who had
fortunately come over at that time from St. Domingo, now interposed to repair a breach which must
end in the ruin of the enterprise, and the probable
destruction of those most interested in its success.




CH. I.]    DIFFICULTIES WITH ALMAGRO.          317
By their mediation, a show of reconciliation was
at length effected between the parties, on Pizarro's assurance that he would relinquish the dignity of Adelantado in favor of his rival, and petition
the emperor to confirm him in the possession of
it;- an assurance, it may be remarked, not easy
to reconcile with his former assertion in respect to
the avowed policy of the Crown in bestowing this
office.  He was, moreover, to apply for a distinct
government for his associate, so soon as he had become master of the country assigned to himself;
and was to solicit no office for either of his own
brothers, until Almagro had been first provided
for.  Lastly, the former contract in regard to the
division of the spoil into three equal shares between the three original associates was confirmed in
the most explicit manner. The reconciliation thus
effected among the parties answered the temporary purpose of enabling them to go forward in
concert in the expedition.  But it was only a thin
scar that had healed over the wound, which, deep
and rankling within, waited only fresh cause of
irritation to break out with a virulence more fatal
than ever.l
11 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y good-will, at bottom, between any
Conq., MS.- Naharro, Relacion of the confederates; for Father
Sumaria, MS.- Montesinos, An- Luque wrote to Oviedo that both
nales, MS., ano 1529.- Relacion of his partners had repaid his serdel Primer. Descub., MS.- Za- vices with ingratitude. -" Padre
rate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. Luque, compainero de estos Capi3.-Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, tanes, con cuya hacienda hicieron
MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 1.  ellos sus hechos, puesto que el uno
There seems to have been little e el otro se lo pagaron con ingra



313            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BooK III.
No time was now lost in preparing for the
voyage. It found little encouragement, however,
among the colonists of Panama, who were too familiar with the sufferings on the former expeditions
to care to undertake another, even with the rich
bribe that was held out to allure them.   A few
of the old company were content to follow out the
adventure to its close; and sonie additional stragglers were collected from the province of Nicaragua,
-a shoot, it may be remarked, from the colony of
Panama.   But Pizarro made slender additions to
the force brought over with him from Spain, though
this body was in better condition, and, in respect to
arms, ammunition, and equipment generally, was on
a much better footing than his former levies.  The
whole number did not exceed one hundred and
eighty men, with twenty-seven horses for the cavalry. He had provided himself with three vessels,
two of them of a good size, to take the place of
those which he had been compelled to leave on the
opposite side of the Isthmus at Nombre de Dios;
an armament small for the conquest of an empire,
and far short of that prescribed by the capitulation
with the Crown. With this the intrepid chief proposed to commence operations, trusting to his own
successes, and the exertions of Almagro, who was to
remain behind, for the present, to muster reinforcements.'2
titud segun a mi me lo escribi6 el fer, as usual. I conform to the
mismo electo de su mano." Ibid., statement of Pizarro's secretary,
loc. cit.                Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia,
12 The numerical estimates dif- tom. III. p. 182.




Cal. I.]       HIS THIRD EXPEDITION.              319
On St. John the Evangelist's day, the banners of
the company and the royal standard were consecrated in the cathedral church of Panama; a sermon was preached before the little army by Fray
Juan de Vargas, one of the Dominicans selected by
the government for the Peruvian mission; and mass
was performed, and the sacrament administered to
every soldier previous to his engaging in the crusade
against the infidel.'3  Having thus solemnly invoked
the blessing of Heaven on the enterprise, Pizarro
and his followers went on board their vessels, which
rode at anchor in the Bay of Panama, and early in
January, 1531, sallied forth   on his third and last
expedition for the conquest of Peru.
It was his intention to steer direct for Tumbez,
which held out so magnificent a show of treasure
on his former voyage.     But head winds and currents, as usual, baffled his purpose, and after a run
of thirteen days, much shorter than the period formerly required for the same distance, his little
squadron came to anchor in the Bay of St. Matthew, about one degree north; and Pizarro, after
consulting with his officers, resolved to disembark
his forces and advance along the coast, while the
13 L" El qual haviendo hecho misa cantada que se celebr6 con
bendecir en la Iglesia mayor las toda solemnidad i sermon que prebanderas i estandarte real dia de dic6 el P. Presentdo Fr. Juan de
San Juan Evangelista de dicho anio Vargas, uno de los 5 religiosos que
de 1530, i que todos los soldados en cunplimiento de la obediencia
confesasen i comulgasen en el con- de sus prelados i orden del Empevento de Nuestra Seiiora de la rador pasaban a la conquista."
Merced, dia de los Inocentes en la Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.




320            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BooK III.
vessels held their course at a convenient distance
from the shore.
The march of the troops was severe and painful
in the extreme; for the road was constantly intersected by streams, which, swollen by the winter
rains, widened at their mouths into spacious estuaries. Pizarro, who had some previous knowledge
of the country, acted as guide as well as commander of the expedition.  He was ever ready to give
aid where it was needed, encouraging his followers
to ford or swim the torrents as they best could, and
cheering the desponding by his own buoyant and
courageous spirit.
At length they reached a thick-settled hamlet, or
rather town, in the province of Coaque. The Spaniards rushed on the place, and the inhabitants, without offering resistance, fled in terror to the neigh
bouring forests, leaving their effects - of much greater value than had been anticipated - in the hands
of the invaders. " We fell on them, sword in hand,"
says one of the Conquerors, with some naivete;
" for, if we had advised the Indians of our approach,
we should never have found there such store of gold
and precious  stones." 4  The natives, however,
according to another authority, stayed voluntarily;' for, as they had done no harm to the white men,
they flattered themselves none would be offered to
them, but that there would be only an interchange
14," Pues llegados a este pueblo cantidad de oro y esmeraldas que
de Coaque dieron de supito sn en else tomaron." Pedro Pizarre,
savello la gente del porque si estu- Descub. y Conq., MS.
7ieran avisados. No se tomara la




CH. I.]      ADVENTURES ON THE COAST.           321
of good offices with the strangers,15 -  an expectation founded, it may be, on the good character which
the Spaniards had established for themselves on
their preceding visit, but in which the simple people
now found themselves most unpleasantly deceived.
Rushing into the deserted dwellings, the invaders found there, besides stuffs of various kinds, and
food most welcome in their famished condition, a
large quantity of gold and silver wrought into clumsy ornaments, together with many precious stones;
for this was the region of the esmeraldas, or emeralds, where that valuable gem was most abundant.
One of these jewels that fell into the hands of Pizarro, in this neighbourhood, was as large as a
pigeon's egg. Unluckily, his rude followers did not
know the value of their prize; and they broke
many of them in pieces by pounding them with
hammers.'6    They were led to this extraordinary
proceeding, it is said, by one of the Dominican
missionaries, Fray Reginaldo de Pedraza, who assured them that this was the way to prove the true
emerald, which could not be broken. It was observed that the good father did not subject his own
jewels to this wise experiment; but, as the stones,
15 Herrera, Hist. General, dec. cir que algunos que las conoscieron
4, lib. 7, cap. 9.        las guardaron. Pero ffinalmente
16 Relacion del Primer. Descub., muchos vbieron esmeraldas de muMS.-Zarate, Conq. del Peru, cho valor; vnos las provavan en
lib. 1, cap. 4.            yunques, dandolas con martillos,
" A lo que se ha entendido en diziendo que si hera esmeralda no
las esmeraldas ovo gran hierro y se quebraria; otros las despreciaban,
torpedad en algunas Personas por diziendo que era vidrio." Pedro
no conoscellas. Aunque quieren de- Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.
VOL. I.          41




322               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BooK 111.
in consequence of it, fell in value, being regarded
merely as colored glass, he carried back a considerable store of them   to Panama.17
The gold and silver ornaments rifled from the
dwellings were brought together and deposited in
a common heap; when a fifth was deducted for the
Crown, and Pizarro distributed the remainder in
due proportions among the officers and privates of
his company. This was the usage invariably observed on the like occasions throughout the Conquest.   The invaders had embarked in a common
adventure.     Their interest was common, and          to
have allowed every one to plunder on his own account would only have led to insubordination and
perpetual broils.    All were required, therefore, on
pain of death, to contribute whatever they obtained,
whether by bargain or by rapine, to the general
stock; and all were too much interested in the
execution of the penalty to allow the unhappy culprit, who violated the law, any chance of escape.3
Pizarro, with his usual policy, sent back to Panama a large quantity of the gold, no less than
twenty thousand castellanos in value, in the belief
that the sight of so much treasure, thus speedily
17 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y de alli el governador lo rrepartiese,
Conq., MS. —Herrera, Hist. Ge- dando a cada uno confforme 6 su
neral, dec. 4, lib. 7, cap. 9.  persona y meritos de servicios; y
18 ", Los Espafoles las rrecoxe- esta horden se guardo en toda esta
ron y juntaron el oro y la plata, tierra en la conquista della, y al
porque asi estava mandado y hor- que se le hallara oro 6 plata escondenado sopena de la vida el que dido muriera por ello, y deste medio
otra cossa hiziese, porque todos lo nadie oso escondello." Pedro Piavian de traer a monton para que zarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.




CH. I.]      ADVENTURES ON THE COAST.                 323
acquired, would settle the doubts of the wavering,
and   decide   them   on joining     his banner.'9     He
judged right.     As one of the Conquerors         piously
expresses it, "It pleased the Lord that we should
fall in with the town of Coaque, that the riches
of the land might find credit with the people, and
that they should flock to it." 20
Pizarro, having refreshed his men, continued
his march along the coast, but no longer accompanied by the vessels, which had returned for recruits
to Panama. The road, as he advanced, was checkered with strips of sandy waste, which, drifted
about by the winds, blinded the soldiers, and afforded only treacherous footing for man and beast. The
glare was intense; and the rays of a vertical sun
beat fiercely on the iron mail and the thick quilted
doublets of cotton, till the fainting troops were almost suffocated with     the heat.     To   add   to their
distresses, a strange epidemic broke out in the little
army. It took the form of ulcers, or rather hideous
warts of great size, which covered the body, and
when lanced, as was the case with some, discharged
19 The booty was great, indeed, Montesinos, and Herrera content
if, as Pedro Pizarro, one of the Con- themselves with stating that he
querors present, says, it amounted sent back 20,000 castellanos in the
in value to 200,000 gold castella- vessels to Panama.
nos. " Aqui se hallo mucha cha-  20," Fueron a dar en vn pueblo
quira de oro y de plata, muchas que se dezia Coaque que fue nuecoronas hechas de oro a manera de stro Selior servido tapasen con el,
imperiales, y otras muchas piezas porque con lo que en el se hallo se
en que se avaleo montar mas de acredito la tierra y vino gente a
dozientos mill castellanos." (De- ella." Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
scub. y Conq., MS.) Naharro, Conq., MS.




324            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BooK Ill.
such a quantity of blood as proved fatal to the
sufferer.  Several died of this frightful disorder,
which was so sudden in its attack, and attended
with such prostration of strength, that those who
lay down well at night were unable to lift their
hands to their heads in the morning.21 The epidemic,
which made its first appearance during this invasion,
and which did not long survive it, spread over the
country, sparing neither native nor white man.22  It
was one of those plagues from the vial of wrath,
which the destroying angel, who follows in the path
of the conqueror, pours out on the devoted nations
The Spaniards rarely experienced on their march
either resistance or annoyance from the inhabitants,
who, instructed by the example of Coaque, fled
with their effects into the woods and neighbouring
mountains. No one came out to welcome the
strangers and offer the rites of hospitality, as on
their last visit to the land. For the white men
were no longer regarded as good beings that had
come from heaven, but as ruthless destroyers, who,
invulnerable to the assaults of the Indians, were
borne along on the backs of fierce animals, swifter
than the wind, with weapons in their hands, that
scattered fire and desolation as they went. Such
were the stories now circulated of the invaders,
which, preceding them everywhere on their march,
21 Naharro, Relacion Sumaria,  22 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte
MS.- Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y 2, lib. 1, cap. 15.
Conq., MS. - Montesinos, Annales, MS., afo 1530.




Cn. I.]    ADVENTURES ON THE COAST.          325
closed the hearts, if not the doors, of the natives
against them. Exhausted by the fatigue of travel
and by disease, and grievously disappointed at the
poverty of the land, which now offered no compensation for their toils, the soldiers of Pizarro cursed
the hour in which they had enlisted under his standard, and the men of Nicaragua, in particular, says
the old chronicler, calling to. mind their pleasant
quarters in their luxurious land, sighed only to return to their Mahometan paradise.23
At this juncture the army was gladdened by the
sight of a vessel from Panama, which brought some
supplies, together with the royal treasurer, the
veedor or inspector, the comptroller, and other high
officers appointed by the Crown to attend the expedition. They had been left in Spain by Pizarro, in
consequence of his abrupt departure from the country; and the Council of the Indies, on learning the
circumstance, had sent instructions to Panama to
prevent the sailing of his squadron from that port.
But the Spanish government, with more wisdom,
countermanded the order, only requiring the functionaries to quicken their own departure, and take
their place without loss of time in the expedition.
The Spaniards in their march along the coast had
now advanced as far as Puerto Viejo. Here they
23 l" Aunque ellos no ninguno y no oro ni plata como atras avian
por aver venido, porque como avian hallado, algunos y todos se holgadexado el paraiso de mahoma que ran de volver de adonde avian
hera Nicaragua y hallaron la isla venido." Pedro Pizarro, Descub.
alzada y falta de comidas y la y Conq., MS.
mayor parte de la gente enfferma




326            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BooK III.
were soon after joined by another small reinforcement of about thirty men, under an officer named
Belalcazar, who subsequently rose to high distinction in this service. Many of the followers of Pizarro would now have halted at this spot and established a colony there. But that chief thought more
of conquering than of colonizing, at least for the present; and he proposed, as his first step, to get possession of Tumbez, which he regarded as the gate of
the Peruvian empire. Continuing his march, therefore, to the shores of what is now called the Gulf
of Guayaquil, he arrived off the little island of
Puna, lying at no great distance from the Bay
of Tumbez. This island, he thought, would afford
him a convenient place to encamp until he was prepared to make his descent on the Indian city.
The dispositions of the islanders seemed to favor
his purpose. He had not been long in their neighbourhood, before a deputation of the natives, with
their cacique at their head, crossed over in their
balsas to the main land to welcome the Spaniards
to their residence. But the Indian interpreters of
Tumbez, who had returned with Pizarro from Spain,
and continued with the camp, put their master on
his guard against the meditated treachery of the
islanders, whom they accused of designing to destroy the Spaniards by cutting the ropes that held
together the floats, and leaving those upon them
to perish in the waters. Yet the cacique, when
charged by Pizarro with this perfidious scheme, denied it with such an air of conscious innocence, that




CH. I.]    ADVENTURES ON THE COAST.       327
the Spanish commander trusted himself and his followers, without further hesitation, to his conveyance, and was transported in safety to the shores
of Puna.
Here he was received in a hospitable manner,
and his troops were provided with comfortable quarters. Well satisfied with his present position, Pizarro resolved to occupy it until the violence of the
rainy season was passed, when the arrival of the reinforcements he expected would put him in better
condition for marching into the country of the Inca.
The island, which lies in the mouth of the river of
Guayaquil, and is about eight leagues in length by
four in breadth, at the widest part, was at that time
partially covered with a noble growth of timber.
But a large portion of it was subjected to cultivation,
and bloomed with plantations of cacao, of the sweet
potato, and the different products of a tropical clime,
evincing agricultural knowledge as well as industry
in the population. They were a warlike race;
but had received from their Peruvian foes the appellation of " perfidious." It was the brand fastened by the Roman historians on their Carthaginian
enemies, —with perhaps no better reason. The
bold and independent islanders opposed a stubborn
resistance to the arms of the Incas; and, though
they had finally yielded, they had been ever since at
feud, and often in deadly hostility, with their neighbours of Tumbez.
The latter no sooner heard of Pizarro's arrival on
the island, than, trusting, probably, to their former




328              CONQUEST OF PERU.           rBooK III.
friendly relations with him, they came over in some
number to the Spanish quarters.        The presence
of their detested rivals was by no means grateful to
the jealous inhabitants of Puna, and the prolonged
residence of the white men on their island could not
be otherwise than burdensome.       In their outward
demeanour they still maintained the same show of
amity; but Pizarro's interpreters again put him    on
his guard against the proverbial perfidy of their
hosts. With his suspicions thus roused, the Spanish
commander was informed that a number of the
chiefs had met together to deliberate on a plan of insurrection.  Not caring to wait for the springing of
the mine, he surrounded the place of meeting with
his soldiers and  made prisoners of the suspected
chieftains. According to one authority, they confessed their guilt.2  This is by no' means certain.
Nor is it certain that they meditated an insurrection.
Yet the fact is not improbable in itself; though it
derives little additional probability from the assertion
of the hostile interpreters.  It is certain, however,
that Pizarro was satisfied of the existence of a conspiracy; and, without further hesitation, he abandoned his wretched     prisoners, ten or twelve     in
number, to the tender mercies of their rivals of
Tumbez, who instantly massacred them        before his
eyes.25
24 Xeres, Conq. del Peru, ap. sasen, les dio algunos principales
Barcia, tom. III. p. 183.  los quales ellos matavan en pre25 " Y el marques don Francisco sencia de los espanoles, cortandoles
Pizarro, por tenellos por amigos y las cavezas por el cogote." Pedro
estuviesen de paz quando alla pas- Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.




CH. I.]    BATTLES IN THE ISLE OF PUNA.            329
Maddened by this outrage, the people of Pun'A
sprang to arms, and threw themselves at once, with
fearful yells and the wildest menaces of despair, on
the Spanish camp. The odds of numbers were
greatly in their favor, for they mustered several
thousand warriors. But the more decisive odds of
arms and discipline were on the side of their antagonists; and, as the Indians rushed forward in a
confused mass to the assault, the Castilians coolly
received them    on their long pikes, or swept them
down by the volleys of their musketry. Their illprotected bodies were easily cut to pieces by the
sharp sword of the Spaniard; and Hernando Pizarro, putting himself at the head of the cavalry,
charged boldly into the midst, and scattered them
far and wide over the field, until, panic-struck by the
terrible array of steel-clad horsemen, and the stunning reports and the flash of fire-arms, the fugitives
sought shelter in the depths of their forests.     Yet
the victory was owing, in some degree, at least,if we may credit the Conquerors, —to the interposition of Heaven; for St. Michael and his legions
were seen high in      the air above the combatants,
contending with the arch-enemy of man, and cheering on the Christians by their example!2G
26 The city of San Miguel was Indios, ya de los nuestros, que haso named by Pizarro to commemo- bia en el aire otros dos campos,
rate the event, -and the existence uno acaudillado por el Arcangel
of such a city may be considered Sn Miguel con espada y rodela, y
by some as establishing the truth otro por Luzbel y sus secuaces;
of the miracle.-" En la batalla mas apenas cantaron los Castellade Punl vieron muchos, ya de los nos la victoria huyeron los diablos,
VOL. I.           42




330                CONQUEST OF PERU.             [Boo III.
Not more than three or four Spaniards fell in
the  fight;   but many were      wounded, and among
them Hernando Pizarro, who received a severe injury in the leg from    a javelin.   Nor did the war end
he'e; for the implacable islanders, taking advantage
of the cover of night, or of any remissness on the
part of the invaders, were ever ready to steal out
of their fastnesses and spring on their enemy's
camp, while, by cutting off his straggling parties,
and destroying his provisions, they kept him in perpetual alarm.
In this uncomfortable situation, the Spanish commander was gladdened by the appearance of two
vessels off the island. They brought a reinforcement consisting of a hundred volunteers besides
horses for the cavalry. It was commanded by Hernando de Soto, a captain afterwards famous as the
discoverer of the Mississippi, which still rolls its
majestic current over the place of his burial, -a
fitting monument for his remains, as it is of his re
nown.27
This reinforcement was most welcome to Pizarro,
y formando un gran torvellino de  27 The transactions in Puna are
viento se oyeron en el aire unas given at more or less length by
terribles voces que decian, Venci- Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.
stenos! Miguel vencistenos! De — Conq. i Pob. del Peru, MS.aqui torn6 Dn Francisco Pizarro  Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq.,
tanta devocion al sto Arcangel, que MS. - Montesinos, Annales, MS.,
prometi6 llamar la primera ciudad ubi supra. - Relacion del Primer.
que fundase de su nombre; cum- Descub., MS.- Xerez, Conq. del
pliolo asi como veremos adelante."  Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. pp.
Montesinos, Annales, MS., ano  182, 183.
1530.




CH. I.]  BATTLES IN THE ISLE OF PUNA.     331
who had been long discontented with his position
on an island, where he found nothing to compensate
the life of unintermitting hostility which he was
compelled to lead. With these recruits, he felt
himself in sufficient strength to cross over to the
continent, and resume military operations on the
proper theatre for discovery and conquest. From
the Indians of Tumbez he learned that the country
had been for some time distracted by a civil war
between two sons of the late monarch, competitors
for the throne. This intelligence he regarded as of
the utmost importance, for he remembered the use
which Cortes had made of similar dissensions among
the tribes of Anahuac. Indeed, Pizarro seems to
have had the example of his great predecessor before his eyes on more occasions than this. But he
fell far short of his model; for, notwithstanding the
restraint he sometimes put upon himself, his coarser
nature and more ferocious temper often betrayed
him into acts most repugnant to sound policy, which
would never have been countenanced by the Conqueror of Mexico.




CHAPTER II.
PERU AT THE TIME OF THE CONQUEST. —REIGN OF HUAYNA CAPAC.
-- THE INCA BROTHERS. CONTEST FOR THE EMPIRE. -TRIUMPH
AND CRUELTIES OF ATAHUALLPA.
BEFORE accompanying the march of Pizarro and
his followers into the country of the Incas, it is
necessary to make the reader acquainted with the
critical situation of the kingdom at that time. For
the Spaniards arrived just at the consummation of
an important revolution,- at a crisis most favorable to their views of conquest, and but for which,
indeed, the conquest, with such a handful of soldiers, could never have been achieved.
In the latter part of the fifteenth century died
Tupac Inca Yupanqui, one of the most renowned
of the " Children of the Sun," who, carrying the
Peruvian arms across the burning sands of Atacama, penetrated to the remote borders of Chili,
while in the opposite direction he enlarged the
limits of the empire by the acquisition of the southern provinces of Quito. The war in this quarter
was conducted by his son Huayna Capac, who succeeded his father on the throne, and fully equalled
him in military daring and in capacity for govern
ment.




CH. II.]   REIGN OF HUAYNA CAPAC.         333
Under this prince, the whole of the powerful
state of Quito, which rivalled that of Peru itself in
wealth and refinement, was brought under the sceptre of the Incas; whose empire received, by this
conquest, the most important accession yet made to
it since the foundation of the dynasty of Manco
Capac. The remaining days of the victorious monarch were passed in reducing the independent tribes
on the remote limits of his territory, and, still more,
in cementing his conquests by the introduction of
the Peruvian polity. He was actively engaged in
completing the great works of his father, especially
the high-roads which led from Quito to the capital.
He perfected the establishment of posts, took great
pains to introduce the Quichua dialect throughout
the empire, promoted a better system of agriculture,
and, in fine, encouraged the different branches of
domestic industry and the various enlightened plans
of his predecessors for the improvement of his people. Under his sway, the Peruvian monarchy reached its most palmy state; and under both him and
his illustrious father it was advancing with such
rapid strides in the march of civilization as would
soon have carried it to a level with the more refined
despotisms of Asia, furnishing the world, perhaps,
with higher evidence of the capabilities of the
American Indian than is elsewhere to be found
on the great western continent.- But other and
gloomier destinies were in reserve for the Indian
races.
The first arrival of the white men on the South




334            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BooK III.
American shores of the Pacific was about ten years
before the death of Huayna Capac, when Balboa
crossed the Gulf of St. Michael, and obtained the
first clear report of the empire of the Incas. Whether tidings of these adventurers reached the Indian
monarch's ears is doubtful.  There is no doubt,
however, that he obtained the news of the first expedition under Pizarro and Almagro, when the latter commander penetrated as far as the Rio de San
Juan, about the fourth degree north. The accounts
which he received made a strong impression on the
mind of Huayna Capac. He discerned in the formidable prowess and weapons of the invaders proofs
of a civilization far superior to that of his own
people. He intimated his apprehension that they
would return, and that at some day, not far distant,
perhaps, the throne of the Incas might be shaken
by these strangers, endowed with such incomprehensible powers.'  To the vulgar eye, it was a
little speck on the verge of the horizon; but that
of the sagacious monarch seemed to descry in it the
dark thunder-cloud, that was to spread wider and
wider till it burst in fury on his nation!
There is some ground for believing thus much.
But other accounts, which have obtained a popular
currency, not content with this, connect the first
tidings of the white men with predictions long
extant in the country, and with supernatural appearances, which filled the hearts of the whole
1 Sarmiento, an honest author- of the Inca lords who heard it.
ity, tells us he had this from some Relacion, MS., cap. 65.




CH. II.]      REIGN OF HUAYNA CAPAC.              335
nation with dismay. Comets were seen flaming
athwart the heavens. Earthquakes shook the land;
the moon was girdled with rings of fire of many
colors; a thunderbolt fell on one of the royal palaces and consumed it to ashes; and an eagle, chased
by several hawks, was seen, screaming in the air,
to hover above the great square of Cuzco, when,
pierced by the talons of his tormentors, the king of
birds fell lifeless in the presence of many of the
Inca nobles, who read in this an augury of their
own destruction!     Huayna Capac himself, calling
his great officers around him, as he found he was
drawing near his end, announced the subversion of
his empire by the race of white and bearded strangers, as the consummation predicted by the oracles
after the reign of the twelfth Inca, and he enjoined
it on his vassals not to resist the decrees of Heaven,
but to yield obedience to its messengers.2
Such is the report of the impressions made by
the appearance of the Spaniards in the country, reminding one of the similar feelings of superstitious
terror occasioned by their appearance in Mexico.
But the traditions of the latter land rest on much
2 A minute relation of these su- desire to magnify and mystify every
pernatural occurrences is given by thing relating to his own order, and,
the Inca Garcilasso de la Vega, indeed, his nation. His work is
(Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. the source of most of the facts14,) whose situation opened to and the falsehoods-that have obhim the very best sources of in- tained circulation in respect to the
formation, which is more than ancient Peruvians. Unfortunately,
counterbalanced by the defects in at this distance of time, it is not
his own character as an historian, always easy to distinguish the one
— his childish credulity, and his from the other.




336             CONQUEST OF PERU.          [BooK III.
higher authority than those of the Peruvians, which,
unsupported by contemporary testimony, rest almost
wholly on the naked assertion of one of their own
nation, who thought to find, doubtless, in the inevitable decrees of Heaven, the best apology for the
supineness of his countrymen.
It is not improbable that rumors of the advent
of a strange and mysterious race should have spread
gradually among the Indian tribes along the great
table-land of the Cordilleras, and should have shaken the hearts of the stoutest warriors with feelings
of undefined dread, as of some impending calamity.
In this state of mind, it was natural that physical
convulsions, to which that volcanic country is peculiarly subject, should have made an unwonted impression on their minds; and that the phenomena,
which might have been regarded only as extraordinary, in the usual seasons of political security,
should now be interpreted by the superstitious soothsayer as the handwriting on the heavens, by which
the God of the Incas proclaimed the approaching
downfall of their empire.
Huayna Capac had, as usual with the Peruvian
princes, a multitude of concubines, by whom he left
a numerous posterity. The heir to the crown, the
son of his lawful wife and sister, was named Huascar.3  At the period of the history at which we are
3 Huascar, in the Quichua dia- Capac celebrated the birth of the
lect, signifies" a cable." Therea- prince by a festival, in which he
son of its being given to the heir introduced a massive gold chain for
apparent is remarkable. Huayna the nobles to hold in their hands




CH. II.]       REIGN OF HUAYNA CAPAC.                 337
now arrived, he was about thirty years of age.
Next to the heir-apparent, by another wife, a cousin
of the   monarch's, came      Manco    Capac, a young
prince who will occupy an important place in our
subsequent story. But the best-beloved of the Inca's children was Atahuallpa. His mother was the
daughter of the last Scyri of Quito, who had died
of grief, it was said, not long after the subversion
of his kingdom by Huayna Capac. The princess
was beautiful, and the Inca, whether to gratify
his passion, or, as the Peruvians say, willing to
make amends for the ruin of her parents, received
her among his concubines. The historians of Quito
assert that she was his lawful wife; but this dignity, according to the usages of the empire, was
reserved for maidens of the Inca blood.
The latter years of Huayna Capac were passed
in his new kingdom of Quito. Atahuallpa was
accordingly brought up under his own eye, accompanied him, while in his tender years, in his campaigns, slept in the same tent with his royal father,
and ate from    the same plate.4    The vivacity of the
as they performed their national however, as the story has been
dances. The chain was seven hun- greedily circulated by most of the
dred feet in length, and the links Castilian writers, both of that and
nearly as big round as a man's of the succeeding age.
wrist!  (See Zarate, Conq. del  4 " Atabalipa era bien quisto de
Peru, lib. 1, cap. 14. - Garcilasso, los Capitanes viejos de su Padre y
Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. de los Soldados, porque andubo en
1.) The latter writer had the par- la guerra en su nifez y porque el
ticulars, he tells us, from his old en vida le mostr6 tanto amor que
Inca uncle, - who seems to have no le dejaba comer otra cosa que
dealt largely in the marvellous; lo que el le daba de su plato."
not too largely for his audience, Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 66.
VOL. I.            43




338                CONQUEST OF PERU.              [BooK III.
boy, his courage and generous nature, won the affections of the old monarch to such a degree, that he
resolved to depart from the established usages of the
realm, and divide his empire between him and his
elder brother Huascar. On his death-bed, he called
the great officers of the crown around him, and declared it to be his will that the ancient kingdom
of Quito   should   pass to Atahuallpa, who might be
considered as having a natural claim on it, as the
dominion of his ancestors. The rest of the empire
he settled on Huascar; and he enjoined it on the
two brothers to acquiesce in this arrangement, and
to live in amity with each other. This was the last
act of the heroic monarch; doubtless, the most impolitic of his whole life. With his dying breath he
subverted the fundamental laws of the empire; and,
while he recommended harmony between the successors to his authority, he left in this very division
of it the seeds of inevitable discord.5
His death took place, as seems probable, at the
close of 1525, not quite seven years before Pizarro's arrival at Puna.6      The tidings of his decease
5 Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, 1525. (Hist. du Perou, chap. 14.)
MS., Parte 1, lib. 8, cap. 9.-  Velasco, another inhabitant of the
Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. same place, after an investigation
12. - Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., of the different accounts, comes to
cap. 65. -Xerez, Conq. del Peru, the like conclusion. (Hist. de Quiap. Bareia, tom. III. p. 201.  to,tom. I. p. 232.) Dr. Robertson,
6 The precise date of this event, after telling us that Huayna Capac
though so near the time of the died in 1529, speaks again of this
Conquest, is matter of doubt. Bal- event as having happened in 1527.
boa, a contemporary with the Con- (Conf. America, vol. III. pp. 25,
querors, and who wrote at Quito, 381.) Any one, who has been
where the Inca died, fixes it at bewildered by the chronological




CH. II.]    REIGN OF HUAYNA CAPAC.           339
spread sorrow and consternation throughout the
land; for, though stern and even inexorable to the
rebel and the long-resisting foe, he was a brave
and magnanimous monarch, and legislated with
the enlarged views of a prince who regarded every
part of his dominions as equally his concern. The
people of Quito, flattered by the proofs which he
had given of preference for them by his permanent residence in that country, and his embellishment of their capital, manifested unfeigned sorrow at
his loss; and his subjects at Cuzco, proud of the
glory which his arms and his abilities had secured
for his native land, held him in no less admiration;7 while the more thoughtful and the more
timid, in both countries, looked with apprehension
to the future, when the sceptre of the vast empire,
instead of being swayed by an old and experienced
hand, was to be consigned to rival princes, naturally
jealous of one another, and, from  their age, necessarily exposed to the unwholesome influence of
crafty and ambitious counsellors. The people testified their regret by the unwonted honors paid to the
memory of the deceased Inca.   His heart was retained in Quito, and his body, embalmed after the
fashion of the country, was transported to Cuzco,
snarl of the ancient chronicles, will part of his subjects, at least, if, as
not be surprised at meeting occa- the historian of the Incas tells us,
sionally with such inconsistencies "' he was never known to refuse a
in a writer who is obliged to take woman, of whatever age or degree
them as his guides.      she might be, any favor that she
7 One cannot doubt this mon- asked of him"! Corn. Real.,
arch's popularity with the female Parte 1, lib. 8, cap. 7




340            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK 111
to take its place in the great temple of the Sun, by
the side of the remains of his royal ancestors. His
obsequies were celebrated with sanguinary splendor
in both the capitals of his far-extended empire;
and several thousand of the imperial concubines,
with numerous pages and officers of the palace, are
said to have proved their sorrow, or their superstition, by offering up their own lives, that they
might accompany their departed lord to the bright
mansions of the Sun.8
For nearly five years after the death of Huayna
Capac, the royal brothers reigned, each over his allotted portion of the empire, without distrust of one
another, or, at least, without collision. It seemed
as if the wish of their father was to be completely
realized, and that the two states were to maintain
their respective integrity and independence as much
as if they had never been united into one. But,
with the manifold causes for jealousy and discontent,
and the swarms of courtly sycophants, who would
find their account in fomenting these feelings, it
was easy to see that this tranquil state of things
could not long endure. Nor would it have endured
so long, but for the more gentle temper of Huascar,
the only party who had ground for complaint. He
was four or five years older than his brother, and was
possessed of courage not to be doubted; but he was
a prince of a generous and easy nature, and perhaps
if left to himself, might have acquiesced in an ar
8 Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap. 65.- Herrera, Hist. General,
dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 17.




CH. 11.]      THE INCA BROTHERS.         341
rangement which, however unpalatable, was the
will of his deified father. But Atahuallpa was of a
different temper. Warlike, ambitious, and daring,
he was constantly engaged in enterprises for the
enlargement of his own territory, though his crafty
policy was scrupulous not to aim at extending his
acquisitions in the direction of his royal brother.
His restless spirit, however, excited some alarm at
the court of Cuzco, and Hlascar, at length, sent
an envoy to Atahuallpa, to remonstrate with him on
his ambitious enterprises, and to require him to render him homage for his kingdom of Quito.
This is one statement. Other accounts pretend
that the immediate cause of rupture was a claim
instituted by Huascar for the territory of Tumebamba, held by his brother as part of his patrimonial
inheritance. It matters little what was the ostensible ground of collision between persons placed
by circumstances in so false a position in regard to
one another, that collision must, at some time or
other, inevitably occur.
The commencement, and, indeed, the whole
course, of hostilities which soon broke out between
the rival brothers are stated with irreconcilable,
and, considering the period was so near to that
of the Spanish invasion, with unaccountable discrepancy. By some it is said, that, in Atahuallpa's
first encounter with the troops of Cuzco, he was
defeated and made prisoner near Tumebamba, a
favorite residence of his father in the ancient territory of Quito, and in the district of Canaris. From




342            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [Boos III
this disaster he recovered by a fortunate escape from
confinement, when, regaining his capital, he soon
found himself at the head of a numerous army,
led by the most able and experienced captains in
the empire. The liberal manners of the young
Atahuallpa had endeared him to the soldiers, with
whom, as we have seen, he served more than one
campaign in his father's lifetime.  These troops
were the flower of the great army of the Inca, and
some of them had grown gray in his long military
career, which had left them  at the north, where
they readily transferred their allegiance to the young
sovereign of Quito. They were commanded by
two officers of great consideration, both possessed
of large experience in military affairs, and high in
the confidence of the late Inca. One of them was
named Quizquiz; the other, who was the maternal
uncle of Atahuallpa, was called Chalicuchima.
With these practised warriors to guide him, the
young monarch put himself at the head of his martial array, and directed his march towards the south.
He had not advanced farther than Ambato, about
sixty miles distant from his capital, when he fell in
with a numerous host, which had been sent against
him by his brother, under the command of a distinguished chieftain, of the Inca family.  A bloody
battle followed, which lasted the greater part of the
day; and the theatre of combat was the skirts of the
mighty Chimborazo.9
9 Garcilasso denies that any thing place before the decisive actioi
but insignificant skirmishes took fought on the plains of Cuzco.




CH. II.]        CONTEST FOR THE EMPIRE.                 343
The battle ended favorably for Atahuallpa, and
the Peruvians were routed with great slaughter, and
the loss of their commander. The prince of Quito
availed himself of his advantage to push forward
his march until he arrived before the gates of Tumebamba, which city, as well as the whole district
of Canaris, though an ancient dependency of Quito,
had sided with his rival in the contest. Entering
the captive city like a conqueror, he put the inhabitants to the sword, and razed it with all its stately
edifices, some of which had been reared by his own
father, to the ground. He carried on the same war
of extermination, as he marched through the offending district of Caharis.        In some places, it is
said, the women and children came out, with green
branches in their hands, in melancholy procession,
to deprecate his wrath; but the vindictive conqueror, deaf to their entreaties, laid the country
waste with fire and sword, sparing no man capable
of bearing arms who fell into his hands.'~
But the Licentiate Sarmiento, who  quien yo lo oi, que por amansar
gathered his accounts of these su ira, mandaron a un escuadron
events, as he tells us, from the  grande de nifos y a otro de homactors in them, walked over the bres de toda edad, que saliesen
field of battle at Ambato, when  hasta las ricas andas donde venia
the ground was still covered with  con gran pompa, llevando en las
the bones of the slain. " Yo h6 manos ramos verdes y ojas de
pasado por este Pueblo y he visto palma, y que le pidiesen la gracia
el Lugar donde dicen que esta Ba- y amistad suya para el pueblo, sin
talla se di6 y cierto segun hay la mirar la injuria pasada, y que en
osamenta devieron aun de morir tantos clamores se lo suplicaron, y
mas gente de la que cuentan." con tanta humildad, que bastara
Relacion, MS., cap. 69.        quebrantar corazones de piedra;
10 " Cuentan muchos Indios a mas pooa impresion hicieron en el




344             CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
The fate of Canaris struck terror into the hearts
of his enemies, and one place after another opened its gates to the victor, who held on his triumphant march towards the Peruvian capital. His
arms experienced a temporary check before the
island of Puna, whose bold warriors maintained
the cause of his brother.   After some days lost
before this place, Atahuallpa left the contest to their
old enemies, the people of Tumbez, who had early
given in their adhesion to him, while he resumed
his march and advanced as far as Caxamalca, about
seven degrees south. Here he halted with a detachment of the army, sending forward the main
body under the command of his two generals, with
orders to move straight upon Cuzco. He preferred
not to trust himself farther in the enemy's country,
where a defeat might be fatal. By establishing his
quarters at Caxamalca, he would be able to support his generals, in case of a reverse, or, at worst,
to secure his retreat on Quito, until he was again
in condition to renew hostilities.
The two commanders, advancing by rapid marches, at length crossed the Apurimac river, and arrived
within a short distance of the Peruvian capital. —
Meanwhile, Huascar had not been idle.     On receiving tidings of the discomfiture of his army at
Ambato, he made every exertion to raise levies
cruel de Atabalipa, porque dicen no perdonando sino a algunos ninos
que mand6 a sus capitanes y gentes y a las mugeres sagradas del Temque matasen a todos aquellos que plo." Sarmiento, Relacion, MS.,
habian venido, lo cual fue hecho, cap. 70.




CH. II.j   CONTEST FOR THE EMPIRE.        345
throughout the country. By the advice, it is said,
of his priests- the most incompetent advisers in
times of danger —he chose to await the approach
of the enemy in his own capital; and it was not
till the latter had arrived within a few leagues of
Cuzco, that the Inca, taking counsel of the same
ghostly monitors, sallied forth to give him battle.
The two armies met on the plains of Quipaypan,
in the neighbourhood of the Indian metropolis.
Their numbers are stated with the usual discrepancy; but Atahuallpa's troops had considerably
the advantage in discipline and experience, for
many of Huascar's levies had been drawn hastily
together from  the surrounding  country.  Both
fought, however, with the desperation of men who
felt that every thing was at stake. It was no longer
a contest for a province, but for the possession of
an empire.  Atahuallpa's troops, flushed with recent success, fought with the confidence of those
who relied on their superior prowess; while the
loyal vassals of the Inca displayed all the self-devotion of men who held their own lives cheap in
the service of their master.
The fight raged with the greatest obstinacy from
sunrise to sunset; and the ground was covered with
heaps of the dying and the dead, whose bones lay
bleaching on the battle-field long after the conquest
by the Spaniards. At length, fortune declared in
favor of Atahuallpa; or rather, the usual result of
superior discipline and military practice followed.
The ranks of the Inca were thrown into irretrievVOL. 1.        44




346             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOK III.
able disorder, and gave way in all directions. The
conquerors followed close on the heels of the flying. Huascar himself, among the latter, endeavoured to make his escape with about a thousand
men who remained round his person. But the royal
fugitive was discovered before he had left the field;
his little party was enveloped by clouds of the enemy, and nearly every one of the devoted band perished in defence of their Inca.  Huascar was made
prisoner, and the victorious chiefs marched at once
on his capital, which they occupied in the name of
their sovereign."
These events occurred in the spring of 1532, a
few months before the landing of the Spaniards.
The tidings of the success of his arms and the
capture of his unfortunate brother reached Atahuallpa at Caxamalca. He instantly gave orders that
Huascar should be treated with the respect due to
his rank, but that he should be removed to the
strong fortress of Xauxa, and held there in strict
confinement. His orders did not stop here, - if we
are to receive the accounts of Garcilasso de la Vega,
himself of the Inca race, and by his mother's side
nephew of the great Huayna Capac.
According to this authority, Atahuallpa invited the
Inca nobles throughout the country to assemble at
Cuzco, in order to deliberate on the best means
11 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 12.77. —Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, Sarmiento, Relacion, MS., cap.
MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 9.- 70. —Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Bar- Conq., MS.
cia, tom. III. p. 202. —Zarate,




CH. II.] TRIUMPH AND CRUELTIES OF ATAHUALLPA. 347
of partitioning the empire between him and his
brother.  When they had met in the capital, they
were surrounded by the soldiery of Quito, and
butchered without mercy. The motive for this perfidious act was to exterminate the whole of the
royal family, who might each one of them show a
better title to the crown than the illegitimate Atahuallpa. But the massacre did not end here. The
illegitimate offspring, like himself, half-brothers of
the monster, all, in short, who had any of the Inca
blood in their veins, were involved in it; and with
an appetite for carnage unparalleled in the annals
of the Roman Empire or of the French Republic,
Atahuallpa ordered all the females of the blood
royal, his aunts, nieces, and cousins, to be put to
death, and that, too, with the most refined and lingering tortures. To give greater zest to his revenge, many of the executions took place in the
presence of Huascar himself, who was thus compelled to witness the butchery of his own wives and
sisters, while, in the extremity of anguish, they in
vain called on him to protect them! 12
Such is the tale told by the historian of the
12 Garcilasso, Cor. Real., Parte por la honestidad se callan: da1, lib. 9, cap. 35- 39.    vanles sus hijuelos, que los tuvie" A las Mugeres, Hermanas, sen en bravos, tenianlos hasta que
Tias, Sobrinas, Primas Hermanas, se les caian, y se aporreavan "
y Madrastras de Atahuallpa, col- (Ibid., cap. 37.) The variety of
gavan de los Arboles, y de muchas torture shows some invention in
Horcas mui altas que hicieron: a the writer, or, more probably, in
unas colgaron de los cabellos, a the writer's uncle, the ancient
otras por debajo de los bravos, y I Inca, the raconteur of these Blueotras de otras maneras feas, que beard butcheries.




348              CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BooK 111.
Incas, and received by him, as he assures us, from
his mother and uncle, who, being children at the
time, were so fortunate as to be among the few
that escaped the massacre of their house.'3 And
such is the account repeated by many a Castilian
writer since, without any symptom of distrust. But
a tissue of unprovoked atrocities like these is too
repugnant to    the principles of human nature,and, indeed, to common sense, to warrant our be
lief in them on ordinary testimony.
The annals of semi-civilized nations unhappily
show that there have been instances of similar attempts to extinguish the whole of a noxious race,
which had become the object of a tyrant's jealousy;
though such an attempt is about as chimerical as
it would be to extirpate any particular species of
plant, the seeds of which had been borne on every
wind over the country. But, if the attempt to exterminate the Inca race was actually made by Atahuallpa, how comes it that so many of the pure
descendants of the blood royal — nearly six hundred
in number-    are admitted by the historian to have
been in existence seventy years after the imputed
massacre? 4   Why was the massacre, instead        of
13 ", Las crueldades, que Ata-  14 This appears from a petition
huallpa en los de la Sangre Real for certain immunities, forwarded
hico, dire de Relacion de mi Ma- to Spain in 1603, and signed by five
dre, y de un Hermano suio, que se hundred and sixty-seven Indians
llamo Don Fernando Huallpa Tu- of the royal Inca race. (Ibid.,
pac Inca Yupanqui, que entonces Parte 3, lib. 9, cap. 40.) Oviedo
eranNifiosde menosdediezAflos." says that Huayna Capac left a
Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. 14.  hundred sons and daughters, and




CH. II.] TRIUMPH AND CRUELTIES OF ATAHUALLPA. 349
being limited to the legitimate members of the royal
stock, who could show a better title to the crown
than the usurper, extended to all, however remotely,
or in whatever way, connected with the race?
Why were aged women and young maidens involved
in the proscription, and why were they subjected to
such refined and superfluous tortures, when it is
obvious that beings so impotent could have done
nothing  to provoke the jealousy of the tyrant?
Why, when so many were sacrificed from some
vague apprehension of distant danger, was his rival
Huascar, together with his younger brother Manco
Capac, the two men from whom the conqueror had
most to fear, suffered to live? Why, in short, is the
wonderful tale not recorded by others before the
time of Garcilasso, and nearer by half a century to
the events themselves? 15
That Atahuallpa may have been guilty of excesses, and abused the rights of conquest by some
gratuitous acts of cruelty, may be readily believed;
for no one, who calls to mind his treatment of the
Canaris, -  which his own apologists do not affect
to deny,16- will doubt that he had a full measure
of the vindictive temper which belongs to
that most of them were alive at the all living at the time, and having
time of his writing. " Tubo cien access to the best sources of inhijos y hijas, y la mayor parte de formation; and all, it may be
ellos son vivos." Hist. de las In- added, disposed to do stern justice
dias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 9. to the evil qualities of the Indian
15 I have looked in vain for some monarch.
confirmation of this story in Oviedo,  16 No one of the apologists of
Sarmiento, Xerez, Cieza de Leon, Atahuallpa goes quite so far as
Zarate, Pedro Pizarro, Gomara, -  Father Velasco, who, in the over




360              CONQUEST OF PERU.           [Boo1 III.
"Those souls of fire, and Children of the Sun,
With whom revenge was virtue."
But there is a wide difference between this and
the monstrous and most unprovoked atrocities imputed to him; implying a diabolical nature not to
be admitted on the evidence of an Indian partisan,
the sworn foe of his house, and repeated by Castilian chroniclers, who may naturally seek, by blazoning the enormities of Atahuallpa, to find some apology for the cruelty of their countrymen towards
him.
The news of the great victory was borne on the
wings of the wind to Caxamalca; and loud and
long was the rejoicing, not only in the camp of Atahuallpa, but in the town and surrounding country;
for all now came in, eager to offer their congratulations to the victor, and do him homage. The prince
of Quito no longer hesitated to assume the scarlet
borla, the diadem of the Incas. His triumph was
complete.   He had beaten his enemies on their own
ground; had taken their capital; had set his foot
on the neck of his rival, and won for himself the
ancient sceptre of the Children of the Sun. But
the hour of triumph was destined to be that of his
deepest humiliation. Atahuallpa was not one of
those to whom, in the language of the Grecian
flowings of his loyalty for a Quito constances qu'Atahuallpa et avaieat
monarch, regards his massacre of eprouve autant d'offenses graves et
the Cafares as a very fair retribu- de trahisons, je ne croirai jamais
tion for their offences. "Si les qu'ils eussent agi autrement"1
auteurs dont je viens de parler Hist. de Quito, tom. I. p. 253.
s'etaient trouves dans les memes cir



CH. II.J TRIUMPH AND CRUELTIES OF ATAHUALLPA. 351
bard, " the Gods are willing to reveal themselves.'17
He had not read the handwriting on the heavens.
The small speck, which the clear-sighted eye of his
father had discerned on the distant verge of the
horizon, though little noticed by Atahuallpa, intent
on the deadly strife with his brother, had now risen
high towards the zenith, spreading wider and wider,
till it wrapped the skies in darkness, and was
ready to burst in thunders on the devoted nation.
17 "c O -  yap 7rco 7rdvTEo''o Oeol palvovral evapyel."
OAYS., v. 161




CHAPTER III.
THE SPANIARDS LAND AT TUMBEZ. - PIZARRO RECONNOITRES THE
COUNTRY. - FOUNDATION OF SAN MIGUEL.- MARCH INTO THE
INTERIOR. - EMBASSY FROM THE INCA. - ADVENTURES ON THE
MARCH. —REACH THE FOOT OF THE ANDES.
1532.
WE left the Spaniards at the island of Puna, preparing to make their descent on the neighbouring
continent at Tumbez. This port was but a few
leagues distant, and Pizarro, with the greater part
of his followers, passed over in the ships, while a
few others were to transport the commander's baggage and the military stores on some of the Indian
balsas. One of the latter vessels which first touched
the shore was surrounded, and three persons who
were on the raft were carried off by the natives to
the adjacent woods and there massacred. The Indians then got possession of another of the balsas,
containing Pizarro's wardrobe; but, as the men who
defended it raised loud cries for help, they reached
the ears of Hernando Pizarro, who, with a small
body of horse, had effected a landing some way farther down the shore. A broad tract of miry ground,
overflowed at high water, lay between him and the
party thus rudely assailed by the natives. The tide




anr. III.] THE SPANIARDS LAND AT TUMBEZ.    353
was out, and the bottom was soft and dangerous.
With little regard to the danger, however, the bold
cavalier spurred his horse into the slimy depths, and
followed by his men, with the mud up to their saddle-girths, they plunged forward until they came
into the midst of the marauders, who, terrified by
the strange apparition of the horsemen, fled precipitately, without show of fight, to the neighbouring
forests.
This conduct of the natives of Tumbez is not
easy to be explained; considering the friendly relations maintained with the Spaniards on their preceding visit, and lately renewed in the island of
Puna. But Pizarro was still more astonished, on
entering their town, to find it not only deserted,
but, with the exception of a few buildings, entirely
demolished. Four or five of the most substantial
private dwellings, the great temple, and the fortress- and these   greatly  damaged, and wholly
despoiled of their interior decorations — alone survived to mark the site of the city, and attest its
former splendor.1  The scene of desolation filled
the conquerors with dismay; for even the raw recruits, who had never visited the coast before, had
heard the marvellous stories of the golden treasures
of Tumbez, and they had confidently looked forward
to them as an easy spoil after all their fatigues.
1 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. cios, y todo el por de dentro y de
Barcia, tom. III. p. 185.  fuera pintado de grandes pinturas
"Aunque lo del templo del Sol y ricos matizes de colores, porque
en quien ellos adoran era cosa de los hay en aquella tierra." Relavel, porque tenian grandes edifi- cion del Primer. Descub., MS.
VOL. I.        45




354           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOx III.
But the gold of Peru seemed only like a deceitful
phantom, which, after beckoning them on through
toil and danger, vanished the moment they attempted to grasp it.
Pizarro despatched a small body of troops in pursuit of the fugitives; and, after some slight skirmishing, they got possession of several of the natives,
and among them, as it chanced, the curaca of the
place. When brought before the Spanish commander, he exonerated himself from any share in
the violence offered to the white men, saying that it
was done by a lawless party of his people, without
his knowledge at the time; and he expressed his
willingness to deliver them up to punishment, if
they could be detected. He explained the dilapidated condition of the town by the long wars carried
on with the fierce tribes of Puna, who had at length
succeeded in getting possession of the place, and
driving the inhabitants into the neighbouring woods
and mountains. The Inca, to whose cause they
were attached, was too much occupied with his
own feuds to protect them against their enemies.
Whether Pizarro gave any credit to the cacique's
exculpation of himself may be doubted. He dissembled his suspicions, however, and, as the Indian
lord promised obedience in his own name, and that
of his vassals, the Spanish general consented to take
no further notice of the affair. He seems now to
have felt for the first time, in its full force, that it
was his policy to gain the good-will of the people
among whom he had thrown himself in the face




Cu. III.] THE SPANIARDS LAND AT TUMBEZ.  355
of such tremendous odds.  It was, perhaps, the
excesses of which his men had been guilty in the
earlier stages of the expedition that had shaken
the confidence of the people of Tumbez, and incited them to this treacherous retaliation.
Pizarro inquired of the natives who now, under
promise of impunity, came into the camp, what had
become of his two followers that remained with
them in the former expedition. The answers they
gave were obscure and contradictory. Some said,
they had died of an epidemic; others, that they
had perished in the war with Puna; and others intimated, that they had lost their lives in consequence of some outrage attempted on the Indian
women. It was impossible to arrive at the truth.
The last account was not the least probable. But,
whatever might be the cause, there was no doubt
they had both perished.
This intelligence spread an additional gloom over
the Spaniards; which was not dispelled by the flaming pictures now given by the natives of the riches
of the land, and of the state and magnificence of
the monarch in his distant capital among the mountains. Nor did they credit the authenticity of a
scroll of paper, which Pizarro had obtained from
an Indian, to whom it had been delivered by one
of the white men left in the country. " Know,
whoever you may be," said the writing, "that may
chance to set foot in this country, that it contains
more gold and silver than there is iron in Biscay."
This paper, when shown to the soldiers, excited




356             CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK III.
only their ridicule, as a device of their captain to
keep alive their chimerical hopes.2
Pizarro now saw that it was not politic to protract his stay in his present quarters, where a spirit
of disaffection would soon creep into the ranks of
his followers, unless their spirits were stimulated by
novelty or a life of incessant action. Yet he felt
deeply anxious to obtain more particulars than he
had hitherto gathered of the actual condition of the
Peruvian empire, of its strength and resources, of
the monarch who ruled over it, and of his present
situation. He was also desirous, before taking any
decisive step for penetrating the country, to seek
out some commodious place for a settlement, which
might afford him the means of a regular communication with the colonies, and a place of strength, on
which he himself might retreat in case of disaster.
He decided, therefore, to leave part of his company at Tumbez, including those who, from the state
of their health, were least able to take the field, and
with the remainder to make an excursion into the
interior, and reconnoitre the land, before deciding on
any plan of operations.  He set out early in May,
1532; and, keeping along the more level regions
himself, sent a small detachment under the command of Hernando de Soto to explore the skirts of
the vast sierra.
2 For the account of the trans- del Primer. Descub., MS. -Heractions in Tumbez, see Pedro Pi- rera, Hist. General, dec. 4, lib. 9,
zarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.-  cap. 1, 2. —Xerez, Conq. del
Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS., Peru, ap Barcia tom. III. p. 185.
Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 1.- Relacion




CH. III.] PIZARRO RECONNOITRES THE COUNTRY.  357
He maintained a rigid discipline on the march,
commanding his soldiers to abstain from all acts of
violence, and punishing disobedience in the most
prompt and resolute manner.3  The natives rarely
offered resistance. When they did so, they were
soon reduced, and Pizarro, far from vindictive measures, was open to the first demonstrations of submission. By this lenient and liberal policy, he soon
acquired a name among the inhabitants which effaced the unfavorable impressions made of him in
the earlier part of the campaign. The natives, as
he marched through the thick-settled hamlets which
sprinkled the level region between the Cordilleras
and the ocean, welcomed him with rustic hospitality, providing good quarters for his troops, and abundant supplies, which cost but little in the prolific soil
of the tierra caliente.  Everywhere Pizarro made
proclamation that he came in the name of the Holy
Vicar of God and of the sovereign of Spain, requiring the obedience of the inhabitants as true.
children of the Church, and vassals of his lord and
master. And as the simple people made no opposition to a formula, of which they could not comprehend a syllable, they were admitted as good sul,
jects of the Crown of Castile, and their act of homage - or what was readily interpreted as such —
was duly recorded and attested by the notary.4
3 "l Mando el Gobernador por miento por los Espafioles 6 sus
pregon e so graves penas que no le criados." Oviedo, Hist. de las In
ruese hecha fuerza ni descortesia e dias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 2
\ue se les hiciese muy buen trata-  4 "' E mandabales notificar 6 da




358               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BOOK III.
At the expiration of some three or four weeks
spent in reconnoitring the country, Pizarro came to
the conclusion that the most eligible site for his
new settlement was in the rich valley of Tangarala,
thirty leagues south of Tumbez, traversed by more
than one stream that opens a communication with
the ocean. To this spot, accordingly, he ordered
the men left at Tumbez to repair at once in their
vessels; and no sooner had they arrived, than busy
preparations were made for building up the town
in a manner suited to the wants of the colony.
Timber was procured from the neighbouring woods.
Stones were dragged from       their quarries, and edifices gradually rose, some of which made pretensions to strength, if not to elegance. Among them
were a church, a magazine for public stores, a hall
of justice, and a fortress.  A  municipal government
was organized, consisting of regidores, alcaldes, and
the usual civic functionaries.     The adjacent territory was parcelled out among the residents, and each
colonist had a certain number of the natives allotted
to assist him in his labors; for, as Pizarro's secretary remarks, "it being evident that the colonists
could not support themselves without the services
a entender con las lenguas el re- Reyes sus succesores en los regnos
querimiento que su Magestad man- de Castilla i de Leon; respondieron
da que se les haga a los Indios que asi lo querian 6 harian, guarpara traellos en conocimiento de darian 6 cumplirian enteramente;
nuestra Santa fe catolica, y requi- e el Gobernador los recibio por
riendoles con la paz, 6 que obe- tales vasallos de sus Magestades
dezcan a la Iglesia e Apostolica de por auto publico de notarios."
Roma, 6 en lo temporal den la Ibid., MS., ubi supra.
obediencia a su Magestad e a los




CeI. III.]  FOUNDATION OF SAN MIGUEL.           359
of the Indians, the ecclesiastics and the leaders of
the expedition all agreed that a repartimiento of the
natives would serve the cause of religion, and tend
greatly to their spiritual welfare, since they would
thus have the opportunity of being initiated in the
true faith." 5
Having made these arrangements with such conscientious regard to the welfare of the benighted
heathen, Pizarro gave his infant city the name of
San Miguel, in acknowledgment of the service rendered him by that saint in his battles with the Indians of Puna. The site originally occupied by the
settlement was afterward found to be so unhealthy,
that it was abandoned for another on the banks of
the beautiful Piura.  The town is still of some note
for its manufactures, though dwindled from its
ancient importance; but the name of San Miguel
de Piura, which it bears, still commemorates the
foundation of the first European colony in the empire of the Incas.
Before quitting the new settlement, Pizarro caused the gold and silver ornaments which he had
5 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y asi al servicio de Dios, i bien de
Conq., MS.-Conq. i Pob. del los Naturales, el Gobernador dePeru, MS. - Cieza de Leon, Cro- posit6 los Caciques, i Indios en los
nica, cap. 55. - Relacion del Pri- Vecinos de este Pueblo, porque los
mer. Descub., MS.          aiudasen a sostener, i los Christia< Porque los Vecinos, sin aiuda nos los doctrinasen en nuestra
i servicios de los Naturales no se Santa Fg, conforme a los Mandapodian sostener, ni poblarse el mientos de su Magestad." Xerez,
Pueblo.....A esta causa, con Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom
acuerdo de el Religioso, i de los III. p. 187.
Oficiales que les parecio convenir




360             CONQUEST OF PERU.          [BOOK III.
obtained in different parts of the cour try to be
melted down into one mass, and a fifth to be deducted  for the Crown.      The remainder, which
belonged to the troops, he persuaded them to relinquish for the present; under the assurance of being
repaid from the first spoils that fell into their hands.6
With these funds, and other articles collected in the
course of the campaign, he sent back the vessels to
Panama. The gold was applied to paying off the
ship-owners, and those who had furnished the stores
for the expedition. That he should so easily have
persuaded his men to resign present possession
for a future contingency is proof that the spirit of
enterprise was renewed in their bosoms in all its
former vigor, and that they looked forward with the
same buoyant confidence to the results.
In his late tour of observation, the Spanish comr
mander had gathered much important intelligence in
regard to the state of the kingdom. He had ascertained the result of the struggle between the Inca
brothers, and that the victor now lay with his army
encamped at the distance of only ten or twelve
days' journey from San Miguel. The accounts he
heard of the opulence and power of that monarch,
and of his great southern capital, perfectly corresponded with the general rumors before received;
and contained, therefore, something to stagger the
6 "t E sacado el quinto para su los compareros para se lo pagax
Magestad, lo restante que pertene- del primer oro que se obiese."
ri6 al Egercito de la Conquista, el Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS
(;obernador le tom6 prestado de Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 2.




CH. III.]  MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR.       361
confidence, as well as to stimulate the cupidity, of
the invaders.
Pizarro would gladly have seen his little army
strengthened by reinforcements, however small the
amount; and on that account postponed his departure for several weeks. But no reinforcement
arrived; and, as he received no further tidings
from his associates, he judged that longer delay
would, probably, be attended with evils greater than
those to be encountered on the march; that discontents would inevitably spring up in a life of inac
tion, and the strength and spirits of the soldier sink
under the enervating influence of a tropical climate.
Yet the force at his command, amounting to less
than two hundred soldiers in all, after reserving fifty
for the protection of the new settlement, seemed
but a small one for the conquest of an empire. He
might, indeed, instead of marching against the Inca,
take a southerly direction towards the rich capital
of Cuzco. But this would only be to postpone the
hour of reckoning. For in what quarter of the
empire could he hope to set his foot, where the arm
of its master would not reach him?  By such a
course, moreover, he would show his own distrust
of himself. He would shake that opinion of his
invincible prowess, which he had hitherto endeavoured to impress on the natives, and which
constituted a great secret of his strength; which,
in short, held sterner sway over the mind than
the display of numbers and mere physical force.
Worse than all, such a course would impair the
VOL. 1.        46




362            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK 111.
confidence of his troops in themselves and their
reliance on himself. This would be to palsy the
arm  of enterprise at once.  It was not to be
thought of.
But while Pizarro decided to march into the interior, it is doubtful whether he had formed any more
definite plan of action. We have no means of
knowing his intentions, at this distance of. time,
otherwise than as they are shown by his actions.
Unfortunately, he could not write, and he has left no
record, like the inestimable Commentaries of Cortes,
to enlighten us as to his motives. His secretary,
and some of his companions in arms, have recited
his actions in detail; but the motives which led
to them they were not always so competent to
disclose.
It is possible that the Spanish general, even so
early as the period of his residence at San Miguel,
may have meditated some daring stroke, some
effective coup-de-main, which, like that of Cortes,
when he carried off the Aztec monarch to his quarters, might strike terror into the hearts of the
people, and at once decide the fortunes of the day.
It is more probable, however, that he now only
proposed to present himself before the Inca, as the
peaceful representative of a brother monarch, and,
by these friendly demonstrations, disarm any feeling
of hostility, or even of suspicion. When once in
communication with the Indian prince, he could
regulate his future course by circumstances.
On the 24th of September, 1532, five months




tn. III.]  MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR.       363
after landing at Tumbez, Pizarro marched out at
the head of his little body of adventurers from the
gates of San Miguel, having enjoined it on the colonists to treat their Indian vassals with humanity,
and to conduct themselves in such a manner as
would secure the good-will of the surrounding tribes.
Their own existence, and with it the safety of the
army and the success of the undertaking, depended
on this course. In the place were to remain the
royal treasurer, the veedor, or inspector of metals,
and other officers of the crown; and the command
of the garrison was intrusted to the contador, Antonio Navarro.7 Then putting himself at the head
of his troops, the chief struck boldly into the heart
of the country in the direction where, as he was informed, lay the camp of the Inca.!t was a daring
enterprise, tihus o ve-':ie with a handful of followers into the heart of a powerful empire, to present
himself, face to face, before the Indian monarch in
his own camp, encompassed by the flower of his
victorious army! Pizarro had already experienced
more than once the difficulty of maintaining his
ground against the rude tribes of the north, so much
inferior in strength and numbers to the warlike
legions of Peru. But the hazard of the game, as 1
have already more than once had occasion to remark, constituted its great charm with the Spaniard.
The brilliant achievements of his countrymen, on
7 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS.,
Barcia, tom. III. p. 187. -Pedro Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 10.
Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS. -




364            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK Ill.
the like occasions, with means so inadequate, inspired him with confidence in his own good star;
and this confidence was one source of his success.
Had he faltered for a moment, had he stopped to
calculate chances, he must inevitably have failed;
for the odds were too great to be combated by sober
reason. They were only to be met triumphantly
by the spirit of the knight-errant.
After crossing the smooth waters of the Piura,
the little army continued to advance over a level
district intersected by streams that descended from
the neighbouring Cordilleras. The face of the
country was shagged over with forests of gigantic
growth, and occasionally traversed by ridges of barren land, that seemed like shoots of the adjacent
Andes, breaking up the surface of the region into
little sequestered valleys of singular loveliness.
The soil, though rarely watered by the rains of
heaven, was naturally rich, and wherever it was
refreshed with moisture, as on the margins of the
streams, it was enamelled with the brightest verdure. The industry of the inhabitants, moreover,
had turned these streams to the best account, and
canals and aqueducts were seen crossing the low
lands in all directions, and spreading over the country, like a vast network, diffusing fertility and
beauty around them. The air was scented with
the swveet odors of flowers, and everywhere the eye
was refreshed by the sight of orchards laden with unknown fruits, and of fields waving with yellow grain
and rich in luscious vegetables of every description




CH. III.]  MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR.       365
that teem in the sunny clime of the equator. The
Spaniards were among a people who had carried the
refinements of husbandry to a greater extent than
any yet found on the American continent; and, as
they journeyed through this paradise of plenty, their
condition formed a pleasing contrast to what they
had before endured in the dreary wilderness of the
mangroves.
Everywhere, too, they were received with confiding hospitality by the simple people; for which
they were no doubt indebted, in a great measure, to
their own inoffensive deportment. Every Spaniard
seemed to be aware, that his only chance of success
lay in conciliating the good opinion of the inhabitants, among whom he had so recklessly cast his
fortunes. In most of the hamlets, and in every place
of considerable size, some fortress was to be found,
or royal caravansary, destined for the Inca on his
progresses, the ample halls of which furnished abundant accommodations for the Spaniards; who were
thus provided with quarters along their route at the
charge of the very government which they were
preparing to overturn.8
On the fifth day after leaving San Miguel, Pizarro halted in one of these delicious valleys, to give
his troops repose, and to make a more complete inspection of them. Their number amounted in all
to one hundred and seventy-seven, of which sixty8 Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, -Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 4.- Relacion del Primer. Descub.,
Naharro, Reacion Sumaria, MS. MS.




366              CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK III.
seven were cavalry. He mustered only three arquebusiers in his whole company, and a few crossbow-men, altogether not exceeding twenty.9 The
troops were tolerably well equipped, and in good
condition. But the watchful eye of their commander noticed with uneasiness, that, notwithstanding the general heartiness in the cause manifested
by his followers, there were some among them
whose countenances lowered with discontent, and
who, although they did not give vent to it in open
murmurs, were far from moving with their wonted
alacrity. He was aware, that, if this spirit became
contagious, it would be the ruin of the enterprise;
and he thought it best to exterminate the gangrene
at once, and at whatever cost, than to wait until it
had infected the whole system. He came to an
extraordinary resolution.
Calling his men together, he told them that " a
crisis had now    arrived in their affairs, which it
demanded    all their  courage to meet.      No man
should think of going forward in the expedition,
who could not do so with his whole heart, or who
had the least misgiving as to its success. If any
repented of his share in it, it was not too late to
turn back. San Miguel was but poorly garrisoned,
9 There is less discrepancy in (Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom
the estimate of the Spanish force III. p. 187,) who has been folhere than usual. The paucity of lowed by Oviedo, (Hist. de las
numbers gave less room for it. No Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 1, cap.
account carries them as high as 3,) and by the judicious Herrera,
two hundred.  I have adopted Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 1, cap.
that of the Secretary Xerez, 2.




CH. III.].   MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR.           367
and he should be glad to see it in greater strength.
Those who chose might return to this place, and
they should be entitled to the same proportion of
lands and Indian vassals as the present residents.
With the rest, were they few or many, who chose
to take their chance with him, he should pursue
the adventure to the end."'0
It was certainly a remarkable proposal for a commander, who was ignorant of the amount of disaffection in his ranks, and who could not safely
spare a single man from    his force, already far too
feeble for the undertaking. Yet, by insisting on the
wants of the little colony of San Miguel, he afforded
a decent pretext for the secession of the malecontents, and swept away the barrier of shame which
might have still held them in the camp. Notwithstanding the fair opening thus afforded, there were
but few, nine in all, who availed themselves of the
general's permission. Four of these belonged to the
infantry, and five to the horse. The rest loudly
declared their resolve to go forward with their brave
leader; and, if there were some whose voices were
faint amidst the general acclamation, they, at least,
relinquished the right of complaining hereafter, since
they had voluntarily rejected the permission to re10 " Que todos los que quiriesen 6 que con los Espailoles quedasel,
bolverse a la ciudad de San Miguel pocos 6 muchos, iria a conquistar e
y avecindarse alli demas de los pacificar la tierra en demanda y
vecinos que alli quedaban el los persecucion del camino que llevadepositaria repartimientos di Indios ha." Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias.
con que se sortubiesen como lo MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 3.
habia hecho con los otros vecinos;




368            CONQUEST OF PERU.         [Book III.
turn." This stroke of policy in their sagacious captain was attended with the best effects. He had
winnowed out the few grains of discontent, which,
if left to themselves, might have fermented in secret
till the whole mass had swelled into mutiny. Cortes had compelled his men to go forward heartily
in his enterprise, by burning their vessels, and thus
cutting off the only means of retreat. Pizarro, on
the other hand, threw open the gates to the disaffected and facilitated their departure. Both judged
right, under their peculiar circumstances, and both
were perfectly successful.
Feeling himself strengthened, instead of weakened, by his loss, Pizarro now resumed his march, and,
on the second day, arrived before a place called
Zaran, situated in a fruitful valley among the mountains.  Some of the inhabitants had been drawn
off to swell the levies of Atahuallpa. The Span
iards had repeated experience on their march of the
oppressive exactions of the Inca, who had almost
depopulated some of the valleys to obtain reinforcements for his army.    The curaca of the Indian
town, where Pizarro now arrived, received him with
kindness and hospitality, and the troops were quartered as usual in one of the royal tambos or caravansaries, which were found in all the principal
places.'2
Yet the Spaniards saw no signs of their approach
11 Ibid., MS., loc. cit.- Her- Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p.
rera, Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 187.
1, cap. 2. - Xerez, Conq. del  12 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.




Ca. III.]   EMBASSY FROM THE INCA.         369
to the royal encampment, though more time had
already elapsed than was originally allowed for
reaching it. Shortly before entering Zaran, Pizarro had heard that a Peruvian garrison was
established in a place called Caxas, lying among
the hills, at no great distance from his present quarters.  He immediately despatched a small party
under Hernando de Soto in that direction, to reconnoitre the ground, and bring him intelligence of the
actual state of things, at Zaran, where he would
halt until his officer's return.
Day after day passed on, and a week had elapsed
before tidings were received of his companions, and
Pizarro was becoming seriously alarmed for their
fate, when on the eighth morning Soto appeared,
bringing with him an envoy from the Inca himself. He was a person of rank, and was attended by several followers of inferior condition. He
had met the Spaniards at Caxas, and now accompanied them on their return, to deliver his sovereign's
message, with a present to the Spanish commander.
The present consisted of two fountains, made of
stone, in the form of fortresses; some fine stuffs of
woollen embroidered with gold and silver; and a
quantity of goose-flesh, dried and seasoned in a
peculiar manner, and much used as a perfume, in
a pulverized state, by the Peruvian nobles.'3  The
13,o Dos Fortalegas, a manera polvos, se sahume con ellos, porque
de Fuente, figuradas en Piedra, asi se usa entre los Sefores de su
con que beba, i dos cargas de Patos Tierra: i que le embiaba a decir,
secos, desollados, para que hechos que 81 tiene voluntad de ser su
VOL. I.        47




370                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                 [Boox III.
Indian ambassador came charged also with his
master's greeting to the strangers, whom Atahu
alpa welcomed to his country, and invited to visit
him in his camp among the mountains.'4
Pizarro well understood that the Inca's object in
this diplomatic visit was less to do him courtesy,
than to inform himself of the strength and condition of the invaders. But he was well pleased with
the embassy,;and dissembled his consciousness of
its real purpose. He caused the Peruvian to be
entertained in the best manner the camp could afford, and paid him the respect, says one of the
Conquerors, due to the ambassador of so great a
monarch.'5      Pizarro   urged    him   to  prolong his visit
for some days, which the Indian envoy declined, but
made the most of his time while there, by gleaning
Amigo, i esperalle de Paz en Ca- the finest chapter of the Arabian
xamalca." Xerez, Conq. del Peru, Nights.   (Com. Real., Parte 2,
ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 189.    lib. 1,.cap..19) It is extraordi14 Pedro  Pizarro, Descub. y   nary that none of the Conquerors,
Conq., MS. —Oviedo, Hist. de las who had a quick eye for these
Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. dainties, should allude to them!
3.- Relacion del Primer. Descub., One cannot but suspect that the
MS.- Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. " old uncle" was amusing himBarcia, tom. III. p. 189.        self at his young nephew's exGarcilasso de la Vega tells us pense; and, as it has proved, at
that Atahuallpa's envoy addressed  the expense of most of his readers,
the Spanish commander in the     who receive the Inca's fairy tales
most humble and deprecatory man- as historic facts.
ner, as Son of the Sun and of the  15 " I mando, que le diesen de
great God Viracocha. He adds, comer a el, i a los que con e1 vethat he was loaded with a pro- nian, i todo lo que huviesen menesdigions present of all kinds of ter, i fuesen bien aposentados,
game, living and dead, gold and  como Embajadores de tan Gran
silver vases, emeralds, turquoises, Sefior."  Xerez, Conq. del Peru,
&c., &c, enough to furnish out ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 189.




Ca. III.]     EMBASSY FROM THE INCA.              371
all the information he could in respect to the uses
of every strange article which he saw, as well as
the object of the white men's visit to the land, and
the quarter whence they came.
The Spanish captain satisfied his curiosity in all
these particulars.   The intercourse with the natives, it may be here remarked, was maintained
by means of two of the youths who had accompanied the Conquerors on their return home from
their preceding voyage. They had been taken by
Pizarro to Spain, and, as much pains had been bestowed on teaching them the Castilian, they now
filled the office of interpreters, and opened an easy
communication with their countrymen. It was of
inestimable service; and well did the Spanish commander reap the fruits of his forecast.'6
On the departure of the Peruvian messenger,
Pizarro presented him with a cap of crimson cloth,
some cheap but showy ornaments of glass, and other
toys, which he had brought for the purpose from
Castile. He charged the envoy to tell his master,
that the Spaniards came from a powerful prince,
who dwelt far beyond the waters; that they had
16 " Los Indios de la tierra MS.) Yet it is a proof of the
se entendian muy bien con los' ludicrous blunders into which the
Espanoles, porque aquellos mocha- Conquerors were perpetually fallchos Indios que en el descubri- ing, that Pizarro's secretary conmiento de la tierra Pizarro truxo a stantly confounds the Inca's name
Espana, entendian muy bien nues- with that of his capital. Huayna
tra lengua, y los tenia alli, con Capac, he always styles " old
los cuales se entendia muy bien con Cuzco," and his son Huascar
todos los naturales de la tierra." " young Cuzco."
(Relacion del Primer. Descub.,




b72           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
heard much of the fame of Atahuallpa's victories,
and were come to pay their respects to him, and
to offer their services by aiding him with their
arms against his enemies; and he might be assured, they would not halt on the road, longer
than was necessary, before presenting themselves
before him.
Pizarro now received from Soto a full account
of his late expedition. That chief, on entering
Caxas, found the inhabitants mustered in hostile array, as if to dispute his passage. But the cavalier
soon convinced them of his pacific intentions, and,
laying aside their menacing attitude, they received
the Spaniards with the same courtesy which had
been shown them in most places on their march.
Here Soto found one of the royal officers, employed in collecting the tribute for the government.
From this functionary he learned that the Inca was
quartered with a large army at Caxamalca, a place
of considerable size on the other side of the Cordillera, where he was enjoying the luxury of the
warm baths, supplied by natural springs, for which it
was then famous, as it is at the present day. The
cavalier gathered, also, much important information
in regard to the resources and the general policy of
government, the state maintained by the Inca, and
the stern severity with which obedience to the law
was everywhere enforced. He had some opportunity of observing this for himself, as, on entering the
village, he saw several Indians hanging dead by
their heels, having been executed for some violence




CH. III.]   ADVENTURES ON THE MARCH.              373
offered to the Virgins of the Sun, of whom there
was a convent in the neighbourhood.7
From Caxas, De Soto had passed to the adjacent town of Guancabamba, much larger, more
populous, and better built than the preceding. The
houses, instead of being made of clay baked in the
sun, were many of them constructed of solid stone,
so nicely put together, that it was impossible to detect the line of junction.    A  river, which passed
through the town, was traversed by a bridge, and
the high road of the Incas, which crossed this district, was far superior to that which the Spaniards
had seen on the sea-board. It was raised in many
places, like a causeway, paved with heavy stone
flags, and bordered by trees that afforded a grateful
shade to the passenger, while streams of water were
conducted through aqueducts along the sides to
slake his thirst.   At certain distances, also, they
noticed small houses, which, they were told, were
for the accommodation of the traveller, who might
thus pass, without inconvenience, from       one  end
of the kingdom to the other.'8 In another quarter they beheld one of those magazines destined
17 " A la entrada del Pueblo  18 "Van por este camino caios
havia ciertos Indise ahotcados de de agua de donde los eaminantes
los pies: i supo de este Principal, beben, traidos de its naciinientos
que Atabalipa los mand6 mhatar, de otras partes, y a cada jornada
porque uno de ellos entro en la una Casa a manera de Venta donde
Casa de las Mugeres A dormir con se aposentan los que van d vienen."
una: al qual, i a todos los Porteros Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS.,
que consintieron, ahorc6." Xerez, Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 3.
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom.
III. p. 188.




374               CONQUEST OF PERU.              rBoot III.
for the army, filled with grain, and with articles
of clothing; and at the entrance of the town
was a stone building, occupied by a public officer,
whose business it was to collect the tolls or duties
on various commodities brought into the place, or
carried out of it.9 - These accounts of De Soto not
only confirmed all that the Spaniards had heard of
the Indian empire, but greatly raised their ideas of
its resources and     domestic   policy.    They    might
well have shaken the confidence of hearts less courageous.
Pizarro, before leaving his present quarters, despatched a messenger to San Miguel with particulars of his movements,'sending, at the          same
time, the articles received from the Inca, as well as
those obtained at different places on the route.
The skill shown in the execution of some of these
fabrics excited great admiration, when sent to Castile. The fine woollen cloths, especially, with their
rich embroidery, were pronounced equal to silk,
from which it was not easy to distinguish them. It
was probably the delicate wool of the vicuia, none
of which had then been seen in Europe.20
19 " A. la entrada de este Ca- Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS,
mino en el Pueblo de Cajas esta ubi supra.
una casa al principio de una puente  20 L< Piezas de lana de la tierra,
donde reside una guarda que recibe que era cosa mucho de ver segun
el Portazgo de todos los que van e su primer 6 gentileza, e no se savienen, e paganl6 en la misma cosa bian determinar si era seda 6 lana
que llevan, y ninguno puede sacar segun su fineza con muchas labores
carga del Pueblo sino la mete, y i figuras de oro de martillo de tal
esta costumbre es alli antigua." manera asentado en la ropa que




CH. III.]  ADVENTURES ON THE MARCH.      375
Pizarro, having now acquainted himself with the
most direct route to Caxamalca, -the Caxamarca
of the present day, - resumed his march, taking
a direction nearly south. The first place of any
size at which he halted was Motupe, pleasantly
situated in a fruitful valley, among hills of no
great elevation, which cluster round the base of the
Cordilleras. The place was deserted by its curaca, who, with three hundred of its warriors, had
gone to join the standard of their Inca. Here the
general, notwithstanding his avowed purpose to
push forward without delay, halted four days. The
tardiness of his movements can be explained only
by the hope, which he may have still entertained,
of being joined by further reinforcements before
crossing the Cordilleras.  None such appeared,
however; and advancing across a country in which
tracts of sandy plain were occasionally relieved by a
broad expanse of verdant meadow, watered by
natural streams and still more abundantly by those
brought through artificial channels, the troops at
length arrived at the borders of a river. It was
broad and deep, and the rapidity of the current
opposed more than ordinary difficulty to the passage. Pizarro, apprehensive lest this might be disputed by the natives on the opposite bank, ordered
his brother Hernando to cross over with a small
detachment under cover of night, and secure a safe
era cosa de marabillar." Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS., Parte J
Iib. 8, cap. 4.




376           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
landing for the rest of the troops. At break of day
Pizarro made preparations for his own passage, by
hewing timber in the neighbouring woods, and constructing a sort of floating bridge, on which before nightfall the whole company passed in safety,
the horses swimming, being led by the bridle. It
was a day of severe labor, and Pizarro took his
own share in it freely, like a common soldier, having ever a word of encouragement to say to his
followers.
On reaching the opposite side, they learned from
their comrades that the people of the country, instead of offering resistance, had fled in dismay.
One of them, having been taken and brought before
Hernando Pizarro, refused to answer the questions
put to him respecting the Inca and his army; till,
being put to the torture, he stated that Atahuallpa
was encamped, with his whole force, in three separate divisions, occupying the high grounds and
plains of Caxamalca. He further stated, that the
Inca was aware of the approach of the white men
and of their small number, and that he was purposely decoying them into his own quarters, that he
might have them more completely in his power.
This account, when reported by Hernando to his
brother, caused the latter much anxiety. As the
timidity of the peasantry, however, gradually wore
off, some of them mingled with the troops, and
among them the curaca or principal person of the
village. He bad himself visited the royal camp,
and he informed the general that Atahuallpa lay at




CH. III.]  ADVENTURES ON THE MARCH.       377
the strong town of Guamachucho, twenty leagues
or more south of Caxamalca, with an army of at
least fifty thousand men.
These contradictory statements greatly perplexed
the chieftain; and he proposed to one of the Indians who had borne him company during a great
part of the march, to go as a spy into the Inca's
quarters, and bring him intelligence of his actual
position, and, as far as he could learn them, of his
intentions towards the Spaniards. But the ma;
positively declined this dangerous service, though he
professed his willingness to go as an authorized
messenger of the Spanish commander.
Pizarro acquiesced in this proposal, and instructed
his envoy to assure the Inca that he was advancing
with all convenient speed to meet him. He was to
acquaint the monarch with the uniformly considerate conduct of the Spaniards towards his subjects,
in their progress through the land, and to assure him
that they were now coming in full confidence of
finding in him the same amicable feelings towards
themselves. The emissary was particularly instructed to observe if the strong passes on the road were
defended, or if any preparations of a hostile character were to be discerned. This last intelligence he
was to communicate to the general by means of two
or three nimble-footed attendants, who were to accompany him on his mission.21
21 Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.
MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 4.-  -Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap
Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS. - Barcia, tom. HI. p. 190.
VOL. I.        48




378            CONQUEST OF PERU.      [BOOK HI.
Having taken this precaution, the wary commander again resumed his march, and at the end of
three days reached the base of the mountain rampart, behind which lay the ancient town of Caxamalca. Before him rose the stupendous Andes,
rock piled upon rock, their skirts below dark with
evergreen forests, varied here and there by terraced patches of cultivated garden, with the peasant's cottage clinging to their shaggy sides, and
their crests of snow glittering high in the heavens, -presenting altogether such a wild chaos of
magnificence and beauty as no other mountain
scenery in the world can show. Across this tremendous rampart, through a labyrinth of passes,
easily capable of defence by a handful of men
against an army, the troops were now to march.
To the right ran a broad and level road, with its
border of friendly shades, and wide enough for two
carriages to pass abreast. It was one of the great
routes leading to Cuzco, and seemed by its pleasant
and easy access to invite the wayworn soldier to
choose it in preference to the dangerous mountain
defiles. Many were accordingly of opinion that the
army should take this course, and abandon the
original destination to Caxamalca. But such was
not the decision of Pizarro.
The Spaniards had everywhere proclaimed their
purpose, he said, to visit the Inca in his camp.
This purpose had been communicated to the Inca
himself. To take an opposite direction now would
only be to draw on them the imputation of coward



CH. III.]  REACH THE FOOT OF THE ANDES.          379
ice, and to incur Atahuallpa's contempt. No alternative remained but to march straight across the
sierra to his quarters.   "Let every one of you,"
said the bold cavalier, "take heart and go forward
like a good soldier, nothing daunted by the smallness of your numbers. For in the greatest extremity God ever fights for his own; and doubt not he
will humble the pride of the heathen, and bring him
to the knowledge of the true faith, the great end
and object of the Conquest." 22
Pizarro, like Cortes, possessed a good share of that
frank and manly eloquence which touches the heart
of the soldier more than the parade of rhetoric or
the finest flow of elocution. He was a soldier himself, and partook in all the feelings of the soldier, his
joys, his hopes, and his disappointments. He was not
raised by rank and education above sympathy with
the humblest of his followers. Every chord in their
bosoms vibrated with the same pulsations as his own,
and the conviction of this gave him a mastery over
them. " Lead on," they shouted, as he finished his
brief but animating address, " lead on wherever you
think best. We will follow with good-will, and you
shall see that we can do our duty in the cause of
22 " Que todos se animasen y contrario, la ayuda de Dios es
esforzasen a hacer como de ellos mucho mayor, y en las mayores
esperaba y como buenos espanoles necesidades socorre y faborece a
lo suelen hacer, e que no les pu- los suyos para desbaratar y abajar
siese temor la multitud que se decia la soberbia de los infieles e traerlos
que habia de gente ni el poco nu- en conocimiento de nuestra Sta
mero de los cristianos, que aunque fe catolica." Oviedo, Hist. de las
menos fuesen e mayor el egercito Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 4




380                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                  [BOOK Ill.
God and the King! "23           There was no longer hesitation. All thoughts were now bent on the instant
passage of the Cordilleras.
23 "Todos digeron que fuese     obra al tiempo del efecto, y veria
por el Camino que quisiese i viese  lo que cada uno de ellos haria en
que mas convenia, que todos le    servicio de Dios 6 de suMagestad."
seguirian con buena voluntad 6    Ibid., MS,, loc. cit.




CHAPTER IV.
SEVERE PASSAGE OF THE ANDES.-EMBASSIES FROM ATAHUALLPA.THE SPANIARDS REACH CAXAMALCA. - EMBASSY TO THE INCA. -
INTERVIEW WITH THE INCA. -DESPONDENCY OF THE SPANIARDS.
1532.
THAT night Pizarro held a council of his principal
officers, and it was determined that he should lead
the advance, consisting of forty horse and sixty foot,
and reconnoitre. the ground; while the rest of the
company, under his brother Hernando, should occupy their present position till they received further
orders..
At early dawn the Spanish general and his detachment were under arms, and prepared to breast
the difficulties of the sierra. These proved even
greater than had been foreseen. The path had
been conducted in the most judicious manner round
the rugged and precipitous sides of the mountains,
so as best to avoid the natural impediments presented by the ground. But it was necessarily so
steep, in many places, that the cavalry were obliged
to dismount, and, scrambling up as they could, to
lead their horses by the bridle. In many places,
too, where some huge crag or eminence overhung
the road, this was driven to the very verge of the.




382            CONQUEST OF PERU.      [BOOK Ill.
precipice; and the traveller was compelled to wind
along the narrow ledge of rock, scarcely wide
enough for his single steed, where a misstep would
precipitate him hundreds, nay, thousands, of feet
into the dreadful abyss! The wild passes of the
sierra, practicable for the half-naked Indian, and
even for the sure and circumspect mule, - an
animal that seems to have been created for the
roads of the Cordilleras, -were formidable to the
man-at-arms encumbered with his panoply of mail.
The tremendous fissures or quebradas, so frightful
in this mountain chain, yawned open, as if the
Andes had been split asunder by some terrible convulsion, showing a broad expanse of the primitive
rock on their sides, partially mantled over with the
spontaneous vegetation of ages; while their obscure
depths furnished a channel for the torrents, that,
rising in the heart of the sierra, worked their way
gradually into light, and spread over the savannas
and green valleys of the tierra caliente on their way
to the great ocean.
Many of these passes afforded obvious points of
defence; and the Spaniards, as they entered the
rocky defiles, looked with apprehension lest they
might rouse some foe from his ambush. This ap
prehension was heightened, as, at the summit of a
steep and narrow gorge, in which they were engaged, they beheld a strong work, rising like a fortress, and frowning, as it were, in gloomy defiance
on the invaders. As they drew near this building,
which was of solid stone, commanding an angle of




CH. IV.]  SEVERE PASSAGE OF THE ANDES.       383
the road, they almost expected to see the dusky
forms of the warriors rise over the battlements, and
to receive their tempest of missiles on their bucklers; for it was in so strong a position, that a few
resolute men might easily have held there an army
at bay. But they had the satisfaction to find the
place untenanted, and their spirits were greatly
raised by the conviction that the Indian monarch
did not intend to dispute their passage, when it
would have been easy to do so with success.
Pizarro now sent orders to his brother to follow
without delay; and, after refreshing his men, continued his toilsome ascent, and before nightfall
reached an eminence crowned by another fortress,
of even greater strength than the preceding. It
was built of solid masonry, the lower part excavated from the living rock, and the whole work
executed with skill not inferior to that of the European architect.'
Here Pizarro took up his quarters for the night.
Without waiting for the arrival of the rear, on the
following morning he resumed his march, leading
still deeper into the intricate gorges of the sierra.
The climate had gradually changed, and the men
and horses, especially the latter, suffered severely
fron the cold, so long accustomed as they had been
to the sultry climate of the tropics.2  The vegeta1 "Tan ancha la Cerca como ser mejor labrada la Cerca." Xequalquier Fortalega de Espana, rez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia,
con sus Puertas: que si en esta tom. III. p. 192.
Tierra oviese los Maestros, i Her-  2 " Es tanto el frio que hace en
ramientas de Espana, no pudiera esta Sierra, que como los Cabalos




384            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
tion also had changed its character; and the magnificent timber which covered the lower level of the
country had gradually given way to the funereal
forest of pine, and, as they rose still higher, to the
stunted growth of numberless Alpine plants, whose
hardy natures found a congenial temperature in the
icy atmosphere of the more elevated regions. These
dreary solitudes seemed to be nearly abandoned by
the brute creation as well as by man. The lightfooted vicuina, roaming in its native state, might be
sometimes seen looking down from some airy cliff,
where the foot of the hunter dared not venture.
But instead of the feathered tribes whose gay plumage sparkled in the deep glooms of the tropical
forests, the adventurers now beheld only the great
bird of the Andes, the loathsome condor, who, sailing high above the clouds, followed with doleful cries
in the track of the army, as if guided by instinct
in the path of blood and carnage.
At length they reached the crest of the Cordillera, where it spreads out into a bold and bleak expanse, with scarce the vestige of vegetation, except
what is afforded by the pajonal, a dried yellow
grass, which, as it is seen from below, encircling the
base of the snow-covered peaks, looks, with its brilliant straw-color lighted up in the rays of an ardent sun, like a setting of gold round pinnacles of
burnished silver. The land was sterile, as usual
in mining districts, and they were drawing near
venian hechos al calor, que en los Valles hacia, algunos de ellos e
reefriaron."  Ibid., p. 191.




CH. IV.]   EMBASSIES FROM ATAHUALLPA.         38t
the once famous gold quarries on the way to Caxamalca;
"Rocks rich in gems, and mountains big with mines,.
That on the high equator ridgy rise."
Here Pizarro halted for the coming up of the real.
The air was sharp and frosty; and the soldiers,
spreading their tents, lighted fires, and, huddling
round them, endeavoured to find some repose after
their laborious march.3
They had not been long in these quarters, when a
messenger arrived, one of those who had accompanied the Indian envoy sent by Pizarro to Atahuallpa. He informed the general that the road was
free from enemies, and that an embassy from the
Inca was on its way to the Castilian camp. Pizarro now sent back to quicken the march of the rear,
as he was unwilling that the Peruvian envoy should
find him with his present diminished numbers. The
rest of the army were not far distant, and not long
after reached the encampment.
In a short time the Indian embassy also arrived, which consisted of one of the Inca nobles
and several attendants, bringing a welcome present
of llamas to the Spanish commander. The Peruvian bore, also, the greetings of his master, who
3 "E aposentaronse los Espa- trabajo; y segun a los cristianos
foles en sus toldos 6 pabellones de les pareci6, y aun como era lo
algodon de la tierra que llevaban, cierto, no podia haber mas frio en
6 haciendo fuegos para defenderse parte de Espana en invierno."
del mucho frio que en aquella Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS.,
Sierra hacen, porque sin ellos no se Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 4.
pudieron valer sin padecer mucho
VOL. I.         49




386           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
wished to know when the Spaniards would arrive at
Caxamalca, that he might provide suitable refreshments for them. Pizarro learned that the Inca had
left Guamachucho, and was now lying with a small
force in the neighbourhood of Caxamalca, at a place
celebrated for its natural springs of warm water.
The Peruvian was an intelligent person, and the
Spanish commander gathered from him many particulars respecting the late contests which had distracted the empire.
As the envoy vaunted in lofty terms the military
prowess and resources of his sovereign, Pizarro
thought it politic to show that it had no power to
overawe him. He expressed his satisfaction at the
triumphs of Atahuallpa, who, he acknowledged, had
raised himself high in the rank of Indian warriors.
But he was as inferior, he added with more policy
than politeness, to the monarch who ruled over the
white men, as the petty curacas of the country were
inferior to him. This was evident from the ease
with which a few Spaniards had overrun this great
continent, subduing one nation after another, that
had offered resistance to their arms. He had been
led by the fame of Atahuallpa to visit his dominions, and to offer him his services in his wars;
and, if he were received by the Inca in the same
friendly spirit with which he came, he was willing, for the aid he could render him, to postpone
awhile his passage across the country to the opposite seas. The Indian, according to the Castilian
accounts, listened with awe to this strain of glorifi




CH IV.]    EMBASSIES FROM ATAHUALLPA.            387
cation from the Spanish commander.     Yet it' is possible that the envoy was a better diplomatist than
they imagined; and that he understood it was only
the game of brag at which he was playing with his
more civilized antagonist.4
On the succeeding morning, at an early hour,
the troops were again on their march, and for two
days were occupied in threading the airy defiles
of the   Cordilleras.  Soon   after beginning their
descent on the eastern side, another emissary arrived from  the Inca, bearing a message of similar
import to the preceding, and a present, in like
manner, of Peruvian    sheep.   This was the same
noble that had visited Pizarro in the valley. He
now came in more state, quaffing chicha —the fermented juice of the maize-from        golden goblets
borne by his attendants, which sparkled in the eyes
of the rapacious adventurers.5
While he was in the camp, the Indian messenger,
originally sent by Pizarro to the Inca, returned, and
no sooner did he behold the Peruvian, and the honorable reception which he met with fiom the Span4 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Hist. de las Indias, MS., ubi
Barcia, tom. III. p. 193. -Oviedo, supra.
Hist. de las Indias, MS., Parte 3,  The latter author, in this part
lib. 8, cap. 5.            of his work, has done little more
5 " Este Embajador traia- ser- than make a transcript of that of
ricio de Senor, i cihno, b seis Va, Xerez. His indorsement, of Pisos de Oro fino, con que bebia, i zarro's secretary, however, is of
con ellos daba a beber a los Espa- value, from the fct that, with less
fioles de la Chicha que traia." temptation to mintateor overstate:
Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Bar- he enjoyed excellent opportunities
cia, tom. HI. p 193.- Oviedo, for information.




388           CONQUEST OF PERU        [BooK III.
lards, than he was filled with wrath, which would
have vented itself in personal violence, but for the
interposition of the by-standers. It was hard, he
said, that this Peruvian dog should be thus courteously treated, when he himself had nearly lost his
life on a similar mission among his countrymen.
On reaching the Inca's camp, he had been refused
admission to his presence, on the ground that he was
keeping a fast and could not be seen. They had
paid no respect to his assertion that he came as an
envoy from the white men, and would, probably,
not have suffered him to escape with life, if he
had not assured them that any violence offered to
him would be retaliated in full measure on the persons of the Peruvian envoys, now in the Spanish
quarters. There was no doubt, he continued, of
the hostile intentions of Atahuallpa; for he was
surrounded with a powerful army, strongly encamped about a league from Caxamalca, while that
city was entirely evacuated by its inhabitants.
To all this the Inca's envoy coolly replied, that
Pizarro's messenger might have reckoned on such
a reception as he had found, since he seemed to
have taken with him no credentials of his mission. As to the Inca's fast, that was true; and,
although he would doubtless have seen the messenger, had he known there was one from the
strangers, yet it was not safe to disturb him at these
solemn seasons, when engaged in his religious duties. The troops by whom he was surrounded were
not numerous, considering that the Inca was at that




CH. IV.J THE SPANIARDS REACH CAXAMALCA.   389
time carrying on an important war; and as to
Caxamalca, it was abandoned by the inhabitants in
order to make room for the white men, who were
so soon to occupy it.6
This explanation, however plausible, did not altogether satisfy the general; for he had too deep a
conviction of the cunning of Atahuallpa, whose intentions towards the Spaniards he had long greatly
distrusted. As he proposed, however, to keep on
friendly relations with the monarch for the present,
it was obviously not his cue to manifest suspicion.
Affecting, therefore, to give full credit to the explanation of the envoy, he dismissed him with reiterated assurances of speedily presenting himself
before the Inca.
The descent of the sierra, though the Andes are
less precipitous on their eastern side than towards the
west, was attended with difficulties almost equal to
those of the upward march; and the Spaniards felt
no little satisfaction, when, on the seventh day, they
arrived in view of the valley of Caxamalca, which,
enamelled with all the beauties of cultivation, lay
unrolled like a rich and variegated carpet of verdure,
in strong contrast with the dark forms of the Andes,
that rose up everywhere around it. The valley is
of an oval shape, extending about five leagues in
length by three in breadth. It was inhabited bv a
population of a superior character to any which the
Spaniards had met on the other side of the moun
6 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 194.- Oviedo,
Hist. de las Indias, MS., ubi supra.




390            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
tains, as was argued by the superior style of their
attire, and the greater cleanliness and comfort visible both in their persons and dwellings.7  As far as
the eye could reach, the level tract exhibited the
show of a diligent and thrifty husbandry. A broad
river rolled through the meadows, supplying facilities for copious irrigation by means of the usual
canals and subterraneous aqueducts. The land, intersected by verdant hedge-rows, was checkered
with patches of various cultivation; for the soil was
rich, and the climate, if less stimulating than that of
the sultry regions of the coast, was more favorable to
the hardy products of the temperate latitudes. Be
low the adventurers, with its white houses glittering
in the sun, lay the little city of Caxamalca, like a
sparkling gem on the dark skirts of the sierra. At
the distance of about a league farther, across the
valley, might be seen columns of vapor rising up
towards the heavens, indicating the place of the
famous hot baths, much frequented by the Peruvian
princes. And here, too, was a spectacle less grateful to the eyes of the Spaniards; for along the slope
of the hills a white cloud of pavilions was seen
covering the ground, as thick as snow-flakes, for
the space, apparently, of several miles. "It filled
us all with amazement," exclaims one of the Conquerors, " to behold the Indians occupying so proud
a position! So many tents, so well appointed, as
were never seen in the Indies till now! The spec
7 Xerez, Conq. del'Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 195.




CH. IV.] THE SPANIARDS REACH CAXAMALCA.               391
tacle caused something like confusion and even fear
in the stoutest bosom. But it was too late to turn
back, or to betray the least sign of weakness, since
the natives in    our own    company would, in       such
case, have been the first to rise upon us. So, with
as bold a countenance as we could, after coolly
surveying the ground, we prepared for our entrance
into Caxamalca."8
What were the feelings of the Peruvian monarch we are not informed, when he gazed on the
martial cavalcade of the Christians, as, with banners
streaming, and bright panoplies glistening in the
rays of the evening sun, it emerged from the dark
depths of the sierra, and advanced in hostile array
over the fair domain, which, to this period, had
never been trodden by other foot than that of the
red man. It might be, as several of the reports
had stated, that the Inca had purposely decoyed the
adventurers into the heart of his populous empire,
that he might envelope them with his legions, and
the more easily become master of their property and
persons.9 Or was it from a natural feeling of curiosity, and relying on their professions of friendship,
8 " Y eran tantas las tiendas que tros sintieran, los mismos Indios
parecian, que cierto nos puso harto que llevabamos nos mataran, y ansi
espanto, porque no pensabamos que con animoso semblante, despues de
Indios pudiesen tener tan soberbia haber muy bien atalayado el pueblo
estancia, ni tantas tiendas, ni tan a y tiendas que he dicho, abajamos
punto, lo cual hasta alli en las In- por el valle abajo, y entramos en
dias nunca se vio, que nos caus6 a el pueblo de Cajamalca." Relatodos los Espafloles harta confu- cion del Primer. Descub., MS.
sion y temor; aunque no convenia  9 This was evidently the opinion
mostrarse, ni menos volver atras, of the old Conqueror, whose imporque si alguna flaqueza en noso- perfect manuscript forms one of tha




392                CONQUEST OF PERU.              [BOOK III
that he had thus allowed them, without any attempt
at resistance, to come into his presence? At all
events, he could hardly have felt such confidence in
himself, as not to look with apprehension, mingled
with awe, on the mysterious strangers, who, coming
from an unknown world, and possessed of such
wonderful gifts, had made their way across mountain
and valley, in spite of every obstacle which man
and nature had opposed to them.
Pizarro, meanwhile, forming his little corps into
three divisions, now moved forward, at a more measured pace, and in order of battle, down the slopes
that led towards the Indian city. As he drew near,
no one came out to welcome him; and he rode
through the streets without meeting with a living
thing, or hearing a sound, except the echoes, sent
back from the deserted dwellings, of the tramp of
the soldiery.
It was a place of considerable size, containing
about ten    thousand    inhabitants, somewhat more,
probably, than the population assembled at this
day within the walls of the modern city of Caxamalca.10 The houses, for the most part, were built
best authorities for this portion of chado alli y que queriamos  Porour narrative. " Teniendonos en que era muy sabio y discrete, y aunmuy poco, y no haciendo cuenta que sin luz ni escriptura, amigc de
que 190 hombres le habian de ofen- saber y de sotil entendimiento; y
der, di6 lugar y consinti6 que pasa- despues de holgadose con nosotros,
emrnos por aquel paso y por otros tomarnos los caballos y las cosas
nauchos tan malos como 61, porque que i el mas le aplacian, y sacrifirealmente, a lo que despues se car a los demas."  Relacion del
supo y averigu6, su intencion era Primer. Descub., MS.
vernos y preguntarnos, de donde  10 According to Stevenson, this
veniamos? y quien nos habia he- population, which is of a very




CH. IV.] THE SPANIARDS REACH CAXAMALCA.         393
of clay, hardened in the sun; the roofs thatched,
or of timber. Some of the more ambitious dwellings were of hewn stone; and there was a convent
in the place, occupied by the Virgins of the Sun,
and a temple dedicated to the same tutelar deity,
which last was hidden in the deep embowering
shades of a grove on the skirts of the city. On
the quarter towards the Indian camp was a square
-if square it might be called, which was almost
triangular in form- of an immense size, surrounded by low  buildings.  These consisted of capacious
halls, with wide doors or openings communicating
with the square. They were probably intended as
a sort of barracks for the Inca's soldiers.1l At the
end of the plaza, looking towards the country, was
a fortress of stone, with a stairway leading from the
city, and a private entrance from the adjoining suburbs. There was still another fortress on the rising
ground which commanded the town, built of hewn
stone, and encompassed by three circular walls, -
or rather one and the same wall, which wound up
spirally around it. It was a place of great strength,
and the workmanship showed a better knowledge
of masonry, and gave a higher impression of the
mixed character, amounts, or did the present day, that it did in that
amount some thirty years ago, to of the Incas. Residence in South
about seven thousand. That sa- America, vol. II. p. 131.
gacious traveller gives an animated  11 Carta de Hem. Pizarro, ap.
description of the city, in which he Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS..
resided some time, and which he Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 15. -Xerez
seems to have regarded with pecu- Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom.
liar predilection. Yet it does not III. p. 195.
hold probably the relative rank at
VOL. I.          50




394                  CONQUEST OF PERU                 [BOOK IlI.
architectural science of the people, than any thing
the Spaniards had yet seen.'2
It was late in the afternoon of the fifteenth of
November, 1532, when the Conquerors entered the
city of Caxamalca. The weather, which had been
fair during the day, now threatened a storm, and
some rain mingled with hail - for it was unusually
cold —began       to  fall.'3   Pizarro, however, was so
anxious to ascertain the dispositions of the Inca,
that he determined to send an embassy, at once,
to  his quarters.      He    selected   for this, Hernando
de Soto with fifteen horse, and, after his departure,
conceiving that the       number was too small, in         case
of any unfriendly demonstrations by the Indians,
he ordered his brother Hernando to follow with
twenty    additional troopers.       This captain and one
other of his party have left us an account of the
excursion.'4
12,, Fuergas son, que entre In- addressed to the Royal Audience
dios no se han visto tales."  Xe- of St. Domingo, gives a full acrez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, count of the extraordinary events
tom. III. p. 195.- Relacion del recorded in this and the ensuing
Primer. Descub., MS.             chapter, in which that cavalier took
13 ", Desde a poco rato comeno  a prominent part. Allowing for
ia lover, i caer grani9o."  (Xerez, the partialities incident to a chief
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. actor in the scenes he describes,
III. p. 195.)  Caxamalca, in the  no authority can rank higher. The
Indian tongue, signifies " place of indefatigable Oviedo, who resided
frost"; forthe temperature, though  in St. Domingo, saw its imporusually bland and genial, is some- tance, and fortunately incorporated
times affected by frosty winds from  the document in his great work,
the east, very pernicious to vege- Hist. de las Indias, MS., Parte 3,
tation. Stevenson, Residence in lib. 8, cap. 15.-The anonymous
South America, vol. II. p. 129.  author of the Relacion del Primer.
14 Carta de Hern. Pizarro, MS. Descub., MS., was also detached
The Letter of Hernando Pizarro, on this service.




CH. IV.]     EMBASSY TO THE INCA.         395
Between the city and the imperial camp was a
causeway, built in a substantial manner across the
meadow land that intervened. Over this the cavalry galloped at a rapid pace, and, before they had
gone a league, they came in front of the Peruvian
encampment, where it spread along the gentle slope
of the mountains. The lances of the warriors were
fixed in the ground before their tents, and the Indian soldiers were loitering without, gazing with
silent astonishment at the Christian cavalcade, as
with clangor of arms and shrill blast of trumpet it
swept by, like some fearful apparition, on the wings
of the wind.
The party soon came to a broad but shallow
stream, which, winding through the meadow, formed
a defence for the Inca's position.  Across it was
a wooden bridge; but the cavaliers, distrusting its
strength, preferred to dash through the waters, and
without difficulty gained the opposite bank. A battalion of Indian warriors was drawn up under arms
on the farther side of the bridge, but they offered
no molestation to the Spaniards; and these latter
had strict orders from Pizarro —scarcely necessary
in their present circumstances - to treat the natives
with courtesy. One of the Indians pointed out the
quarter occupied by the Inca.'5
It was an open court-yard, with a light building
or pleasure-house in the centre, having galleries
running around it, and opening in the rear on a
15 Pedro Pizarro, Deseub. y Conq., MS. -Carta de Hern. Piniro, MS.




396                CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BOOK III.
garden. The walls were covered with a shining
plaster, both white and colored, and in the area
before the edifice was seen a spacious tank or reservoir of stone, fed by aqueducts that supplied it with
both warm     and   cold  water.'6   A   basin  of hewn
stone -it may be of a more recent construction -
still bears, on the spot, the name of the        "Inca's
bath." 17  The court was filled with Indian nobles,
dressed in gayly ornamented attire, in attendance on
the monarch, and with women of the royal household. Amidst this assembly it was not difficult to
distinguish the person of Atahuallpa, though his
dress was simpler than that of his attendants. But
he wore on his head the crimson borla or fringe,
which, surrounding the forehead, hung down as low
as the eyebrow. This was the well-known badge
of Peruvian sovereignty, and had been assumed by
the monarch only since the defeat of his brother
Huascar. He was seated on a low stool or cushion,
somewhat after the Morisco or Turkish fashion, and
his nobles and principal officers stood around him,
with great ceremony, holding the stations suited to
their rank.'8
16 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap.  17 Stevenson, Residence in South
Barcia, tom. III. p. 202.     America, vol. II. p. 164.
"Y al estanque venian dos cafos  18 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap.
de agua, uno caliente y otro frio, y Barcia, tom. III. p. 196.- Carta
alli se templava la una con la otra, de Hern. Pizarro, MS.
para quando el Sefor se queria  The appearance of the Peruvian
baiar 6 sus mugeres que otra per- monarch is described in simple but
sona no osava entrar en el so pena animated style by the Conqueror
de la vida." Pedro Pizarro, De- so often quoted, one of the party.
scub. y Conq., MS.            "Llegados al patio de la dicha




Csi. IV.]      EMBASSY TO THE INCA.               397
The Spaniards gazed with much interest on the
prince, of whose cruelty     and cunning they     had
heard so much, and whose valor had secured to him
the possession 6f the empire. But his countenance
exhibited neither the fierce passions nor the sagacity
which had been ascribed to him; and, though in
his bearing he showed a gravity and a calm consciousness of authority well becoming a king, he
seemed to discharge all expression from his features,
and to discover only the apathy so characteristic of
the American races. On the present occasion, this
must have been in part, at least, assumed. For
it is impossible that the Indian prince should not
have contemplated with curious interest a spectacle
so strange, and, in some respects, appalling, as that
of these mysterious strangers, for which no previous
description could have prepared him.
Hernando Pizarro and Soto, with two or three
only of their followers, slowly rode up in front of
the Inca; and the former, making a respectful obeisance, but without dismounting, informed Atahuallpa
that he came as an ambassador from his brother,
the commander of the white men, to acquaint the
monarch with their arrival in his city of Caxamalca.
casa que tenia delante della, vimos muy baja del suelo, como los turcos
estar en medio de gran muchedum- y moros acostumbran sentarse, el
ore de Indios asentado aquel gran cual estaba con tanta magestad y
Seior Atabalica (de quien tanta aparato cual nunca se ha visto
noticia, y tantas cosas nos habian jamas, porque estaba cercado de
dicho) con una corona en la cabeza, mas de seiscientos Senores de su
y una borla que le salia della, y le tierra." Relacion del Primer. Decubria toda la frente, la cual era la scub., MS.
insinia real, sentado en una sillecita




3998             CONQUEST OF PERU.             [P o: Io1They were the subjects of a mighty pi'nce acros
the waters, and had come, he said, drawn thither
by the report of his great victories, to offer their
services, and to impart to him the doctrines of the
true faith which they professed; and he brought atn
invitation from the general to Atahuallpa that the
latter would be pleased to visit the Spaniards in
their present quarters.
To all this the Inca answered not a word; nor
did he make even a sign of acknowledgment that
he- comprehended it; though it was translated for
him by Felipillo, one of the interpreters already noticed.  He remained silent, with his eyes fastened
on  the ground; but one of his nobles, standing
by his side, answered, "It is well."19       This was
an embarrassing situation for the Spaniards, who
seemed to be as wide from        ascertaining the real
disposition of the Peruvian monarch towards themselves, as when the mountains were between
them.
In a courteous and respectful manner, Hernando
Piearro again broke- the silbnce by requesting the
Inca to speak to them himself, and to inform them
what was his pleasure.20    To this Atahuallpa conde19' ""Las cuales por 1 oidSi, con que un Seffor de aquellos que
ser su inclinacion preguntarnos y estaban par de el respondia: bien
saber de donde veniamos, y que esta." Relation ddelPrimer. Dequeriamos, y ver nuestras personas scnb., MS.
y caballos, tubo tanta serenidad en  2'"isto por el dicho Herel rostro, y tanta gravedad en su nando Pizarro que 1e no hablabai
persona, que no quiso responder y que aquella tercera persona res
palabra a lo que se le decia, salvo pondia de suyo, torn6 le i supli




CH. IV.]     INTERVIEW   WITH THE INCA.            399
scended to reply, while a faint smile passed over
his features, - " Tell your captain that I am keeping a fast, which will end to-morrow morning. I
will then visit him, with my chieftains. In the
mean time, let him occupy the public buildings
on the square, and no other, till I come, when I
will order what shall be done."21
Soto, one of the party present at this interview,
as before noticed, was the best mounted and perhaps
the best rider in Pizarro's troop. Observing that
Atahuallpa looked with some interest on the fiery
steed that stood before him, champing the bit and
pawing the ground with the natural impatience of
a war-horse, the Spaniard gave him the rein, and,
striking his iron heel into his side, dashed furiously
over the plain; then, wheeling him round and round,
displayed all the beautiful movements of his charger,
and his own     excellent horsemanship.      Suddenly
checking him    in full career, he brought the animal
almost on his haunches, so near the person of the
Inca, that some of the foam that flecked his horse's
car, que el halase por su boca, y todos, y que no entree en? otra
le respondiese lo que quisiese." ninguna hasta que Yo vaya, que
Ibid., MS.,"ubi supra.      Yo mandar6 lo que se ha de ha21 "El cual a esto volvi6 la ca- cer." Ibid., MS., ubi supra.
beza i mirarle sonriendose y le  In this singular interview I have
dijo: Decid a ese Capitan que os followed the account of the cavalier
erbia aca; que yo estoyen ayuno, who accompanied Hernando Piy le acabo manana por la mastina, zarro, in preference to the latter,
que en bebiendo una vez, yo ire who represents himself as, talkcon algunos destos principales mios ing in a lordly key, that savours
a verme con el, que en tanto el se too much of the vaunt of the hiaposente en esas casas que estan dalgo.
en la plaza que son comunes 6




400               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BooK IlI.
sides was    thrown   on  the   royal garments.     But
Atahuallpa maintained the same marble composure
as before, though several of his soldiers, whom De
Soto passed in the course, were so much disconcerted by it, that they drew back in manifest terror,
an act of timidity for which they paid dearly, if, as
the Spaniards assert, Atahuallpa caused them to be
put to death that same evening for betraying such
unworthy weakness to the strangers.22
Refreshments were now offered by the royal attendants to the Spaniards, which they declined,
being unwilling, to dismount. They did not refuse,
however, to quaff the sparkling chicha from golden
vases of extraordinary size, presented to them by
the dark-eyed beauties of the harem.23 Taking
then a respectful leave of the Inca, the cavaliers
rode back to Caxamalca, with many moody speculations on what they had seen; on the state and opulence of the Indian monarch; on the strength of his
military array, their excellent appointments, and the
apparent discipline in their ranks, - all arguing a
much higher degree of civilization, and consequently
of power, than any thing they had witnessed in the
22 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y after he was taken prisoner. —
Conq., MS. —Relacion del Pri- Soto's charger might well have
mer. Descub., MS.            made the Indians start, if, as Bal"I algunos Indios, con miedo, boa says, he took twenty feet at a
se desviaron de la Carrera, por lo leap, and this with a knight in
qual Atabalipa los higo luego ma- armour on his back! Hist. du Petar." (Zarate, Conq. del Peru, rou, chap. 22.
lib. 2, cap. 4.) -Xerez states that  23 Relacion del Primer. Descub.,
Atahuallpa confessed this himself, MS. —Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap.
in conversation with the Spaniards Barcia, tom. I. p. 196.




CH. IV.]   DESPONDENCY OF THE SPANIARDS.                401
lower regions of the country. As they contrasted
all this with their own diminutive force, too far advanced, as they now were, for succour to reach them,
they felt they had done rashly in throwing themselves
into the midst of so formidable an empire, and were
filled with gloomy forebodings of the result.24 Their
comrades in the camp soon caught the infectious
spirit of despondency, which was not lessened as
night came on, and they beheld the watch-fires of
the Peruvians lighting up the sides of the mountains,
and glittering in the darkness, "as thick," says one
who saw    them, " as the stars of heaven." 25
Yet there was one bosom in that little host which
was not touched with the feeling either of fear or
dejection     That was     Pizarro's, who      secretly   rejoiced that he had now brought matters to the issue
for which he had so long panted. He saw the necessity of kindling a similar feeling in his followers,
ar all would be lost. Without unfolding his plans,
24 "Hecho esto y visto y ata- (Descub. yConq.,MS.) Fear was
layado la grandeza del ejercito, y a strange sensation for the Caslas tiendas que era bien de ver, nos tilian cavalier. But if he did not
bolvimos a donde el dicho capitan feel some touch of it on that occanos estaba esperando, harto espan- sion, he must have been akin to that
tados de lo que habiamos visto, ha- doughty knight who, as Charles V.
biendo y tomando entre nosotros pronounced, " never could have
muchos acuerdos y opiniones de lo snuffed a candle with his fingers."
que se deoia hacer, estando todos  25 " Hecimos la guardia en la
con mucho temor por ser tan pocos, plaza, de donde se vian los fuegos
y estar tan metidos en la tierra del ejercito de los Indios, lo cual?onde no podiamos ser socorridos." era cosa espantable, que como esta(Relacion dtel Primer. Descub., ban en una ladera la mayor parte,
MS.) Pedro Pizarro is honest y tan juntos unos de otros, no pa
enough to confirm this account of recia sine un cielo muy estrellado."
the consternation of the Spaniards. Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS
VOL. I.             51




402            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK 1II.
he went round among his men, beseeching them
not to show faint hearts at this crisis, when they
stood face to face with the foe whom they had been
so long seeking. " They were to rely on themselves, and on that Providence which had carried
them safe through so many fearful trials. It would
not now desert them; and if numbers, however
great, were on the side of their enemy, it mattered
little when the arm of Heaven was on theirs."26
The Spanish cavalier acted under the combined influence of chivalrous adventure and religious zeal.
The latter was the most effective in the hour of
peril; and Pizarro, who understood well the characters he had to deal with, by presenting the enterprise as a crusade, kindled the dying embers of enthusiasm in the bosoms of his followers, and restored
their faltering courage.
He then summoned a council of his officers, to
consider the plan of operations, or rather to propose
to them the extraordinary plan on which he had
himself decided. This was to lay an ambuscade for
the Inca, and take him prisoner in the face of his
whole army! It was a project full of peril, - bordering, as it might well seem, on desperation. But
the circumstances of the Spaniards were desperate.
Whichever way they turned, they were menaced
by the most appalling dangers; and better was it
bravely to confront the danger, than weakly to
shrink from it, when there was no avenue for escape.
6 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. II. p. 197.- Na
harro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.




UtH. IV.]  DESPONDENCY OF THE SPANIARDS.  403
To fly was now too late. Whither could they
fly? At the first signal of retreat, the whole army
of the Inca would be upon them. Their movements
would be anticipated by a foe far better acquainted
with the intricacies of the sierra than themselves:
the passes would be occupied, and they would be
hemmed in on all sides; while the mere fact of this
retrograde movement would diminish the confidence
and with it the effective strength of his own men,
while it doubled that of his enemy.
Yet to remain long inactive in his present position
seemed almost equally perilous. Even supposing
that Atahuallpa should entertain friendly feelings
towards the Christians, they could not confide in the
continuance of such feelings. Familiarity with the
white men would soon destroy the idea of any thing
supernatural, or even superior, in their natures. He
would feel contempt for their diminutive numbers.
Their horses, their arms and showy appointments,
would be an attractive bait in the eye of the barbaric monarch, and when conscious that he had the
power to crush their possessors, he would not be
slow in finding a pretext for it. A sufficient one
had already occurred in the high-handed measures
of the Conquerors, on their march through his dominions.
But what reason had they to flatter themselves
that the Inca cherished such a disposition towards
them? He was a crafty and unscrupulous prince,
and, if the accounts they had repeatedly received on
their march were true, had ever regarded the coming




404           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOx III.
of the Spaniards with an evil eye. It was scarcely
possible he should do otherwise. His soft messages
had only been intended to decoy them across the
mountains, where, with the aid of his warriors, he
might readily overpower them. They were entangled in the toils which the cunning monarch had
spread for them.
Their only remedy, then, was to turn the Inca's
arts against himself; to take him, if possible, in his
own snare.  There was no time to be lost; for
any day might bring back the victorious legions who
had recently won his battles at the south, and thus
make the odds against the Spaniards far greater
than now.
Yet to encounter Atahuallpa in the open field
would be attended with great hazard; and even if
victorious, there would be little probability that the
person of the Inca, of so much importance, would
fall into the hands of the victors. The invitation he
had so unsuspiciously accepted to visit them in theii
quarters afforded the best means for securing this
desirable prize. Nor was the enterprise so des
perate, considering the great advantages afforded by
the character and weapons of the invaders, and the
unexpectedness of the assault. The mere circumstance of acting on a concerted plan would alone
make a small number more than a match for a
much larger one. But it was not necessary to admit the whole of the Indian force into the city
before the attack; and the person of the Inca once
secured, his followers, astounded by so strange an




OH. IV.] i DESPONDENCY OF THE SPANIARDS.  405
event, were they few or many, would have no heart
for farther resistance; -and with the Inca once in
his power, Pizarro might dictate laws to the empire.
In this daring project of the Spanish chief, it was
easy to see that he had the brilliant exploit of Cortes in his mind, when he carried off the Aztec mon
arch in his capital. But that was not by violence,
at least not by open violence,- and it received the
sanction, compulsory though it were, of the moam
arch himself. It was also true that the results in
that case did not altogether justify a repetition of the
experiment; since the people rose in a body to sacrifice both the prince and his kidnappers. Yet this
was owing, in part, at least, to the indiscretion of
the latter. The experiment in the outset was perfectly successful; and, could Pizarro once become
master of the person of Atahuallpa, he trusted to
his own discretion for the rest. It would, at least,
extricate him from his present critical position, by
placing in his power an inestimable guaranty for
his safety; and if he could not make his own terms
with the Inca at once, the arrival of reinforcements
from home would, in all probability, soon enable him
to do so.
Pizarro having concerted his plans for the following day, the council broke up, and the chief
occupied himself with providing for the security of
the camp during the night. The approaches to the
town were defended; sentinels were posted at different points, especially on the summit of the fortress, where they were to observe the position of the




406            CONQUEST OF PERU.      [Boox III.
enemy, and to report any movement that menaced
the tranquillity of the night. After these precautions, the Spanish commander and his followers
withdrew to their appointed quarters, - but not to
sleep. At least, sleep must have come late to those
who were aware of the decisive plan for the morrow; that morrow which was to be the crisis of
their fate, - to crown their ambitious schemes with
full success, or consign them to irretrievable ruin!




CHAPTER V.
DESPERATE PLAN OF PIZARRO. - ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS. — HORRIBLE MASSACRE. - THE INCA A PRISONER. -CONDUCT OF THE CONQUERORS. - SPLENDID PROMISES OF THE INCA.DEATH OF HUASCAR.
1532.
THE clouds of the evening had passed away,
and the sun rose bright on the following morning,
the most memorable epoch in the annals of Peru.
It was Saturday, the sixteenth of November, 1532.
The loud cry of the trumpet called the Spaniards
to arms with the first streak of dawn; and Pizarro,
briefly acquainting them with the plan of the assault, made the necessary dispositions.
The plaza, as mentioned in the preceding chapter, was defended on its three sides by low ranges
of buildings, consisting of spacious halls with wide
doors or vomitories opening into the square.  In
these halls he stationed his cavalry in two divisions, one under his brother Hernando, the other
under De Soto.   The infantry he placed in another of the buildings, reserving twenty chosen
men to act with himself as occasion might require.
Pedro de Candia, with a few soldiers and the artillery, — comprehending under this imposing name




408             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BooK III.
two small pieces of ordnance, called falconets, -
he established in the fortress. All received orders
to wait at their posts till the arrival of the Inca.
After his entrance into the great square, they were
still to remain under cover, withdrawn from observation, till the signal was given by the discharge of a
gun, when they were to cry their war-cries, to rush
out in a body from their covert, and, putting the
Peruvians to the sword, bear off the person of the
Inca.   The arrangement of the immense halls,
opening on a level with the plaza, seemed to be
contrived on purpose for a coup de theatre.  Pizarro
particularly inculcated order and implicit obedience,
that in the hurry of the moment there should be
no confusion. Every thing depended on their acting with concert, coolness, and celerity.'
The chief next saw that their arms were in good
order; and that the breastplates of their horses were
garnished with bells, to add by their noise to the
consternation of the Indians& Refreshments were,
also, liberally provided, that the troops should be in
coadition for the conflict.  These arrangements being completed, mass was performed with great solemnity by the ecclesiastics who attended the expedition; the God of battles was invoked to spread
his shield over the soldiers who were fighting to
extend the empire of the Cross; and all joined
-Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y 197. —Carta de Hern. Pizarro,
Conq., MS. - Relacion del Pri- MS. — Oviedo, hit. de las Indias,
mer. Descub.,MS. — Xerez, Conq. MS.,,Parte 3, lib. 8, cap 7
del Peru, ap. Barcia ton. III. p.




CH. V.]     DESPERATE PLAN OF PIZARRO.          409
with enthusiasm in the chant, " Exsurge, Domine,"
"Rise, 0 Lord! and judge thine own cause."2     One
might have supposed them     a company of martyrs,
about to lay down their lives in defence of their
faith, instead of a licentious band of adventurers,
meditating one of the most atrocious acts of perfidy
on the record of history! Yet, whatever were the
vices of the Castilian cavalier, hypocrisy was not
among the number. He felt that he was battling
for the Cross, and under this conviction, exalted as
it was at such a moment as this into the predominant impulse, he was blind to the baser motives
which mingled with the enterprise.     With feelings
thus kindled to a flame of religious ardor, the soldiers of Pizarro looked forward     with   renovated
spirits to the coming conflict; and the chieftain saw
with satisfaction, that in the hour of trial his men
would be true to their leader and themselves.
It was late in the day before any movement was
visible in the Peruvian camp, where much preparation was making to approach the Christian quarters
with due state and ceremony.       A   message was
received from   Atahuallpa, informing the Spanish
commander that he should come with his warriors
2 ( Los Eclesiasticos i Religio- a los soldados con na:sui cristiana
sos se ocuparon toda aquela noohe plati'a qe les kizo: con que, i
en oracion, pidiendo a Dios elmas asegurarles los Eclesiasticos de
conveniente suceso a su sagrado parte de Dios i de su Madre San
servicio, exaltaoion do la f6 e sal- tisima la vitoria, amaneejeren todos
vaeion de tanto numero de almas, mui deseosos de dar la batalla, diderramando muchas lagrimas i ciendo a voces, Exsurge Domine,
sangre en las disciplinas que to- etjudiea causamtuam." Nahanr.
maron. Francisco Pizarro anirn  Relacion. Sumaria, MS.
VOL. I.          52




410               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BOOK III.
fully armed, in the same manner as the Spaniards
had come to his quarters the night preceding. This
was not an agreeable intimation to Pizarro, though
he had no reason, probably, to expect the contrary.
But to object might imply distrust, or, perhaps, disclose, in some measure, his own designs. He expressed his satisfaction, therefore, at the intelligence,
assuring the Inca, that, come as he would, he would
be received by him as a friend and brother.3
It was noon before the Indian procession was on
its march, when it was seen occupying the great
causeway for a long extent. In front came a large
body of attendants, whose office seemed to be to
sweep away every particle of rubbish from the road.
High above the crowd appeared the Inca, borne on
the shoulders of his principal nobles, while others of
the same rank marched by the sides of his litter, displaying such a dazzling show of ornaments on their
persons, that, in the language of one of the Con
querors, "they     blazed  like the   sun."4   But the
greater part of the Inca's forces mustered along the
fields that lined the road, and were spread over the
broad meadows as far as the eye could reach.5
3 " El governador respondi:  4," Hera tanta la pateneria quo
Di a tu Sefior, que venga en hora traian d'oro y plata que hera cossa
buena como quisiere, que de la estrafa lo que Reluzia con el Sol.'
manera que viniere lo recebir6 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq.,
como Amigo, i Hermano." Xe- MS.
rez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia,  5 To the eye of the old Contom. III. p. 197. — Oviedo, Hist. queror so often quoted, the number
de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, of Peruvian warriors appeared not
cap. 7.- Carta de Hem. Pizarro, less than 50,000; "mas de cinMS.                          cuenta mil que tenia de guerra'




CH. V.1  ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS.         411
When the royal procession had arrived within
half a mile of the city, it came to a halt; and Pizarro saw with surprise that Atahuallpa was preparing to pitch his tents, as if to encamp there.
A messenger soon after arrived, informing the Spaniards that the Inca would occupy his present station the ensuing night, and enter the city on the
following morning.
This intelligence greatly disturbed Pizarro, who
had shared in the general impatience of his men
at the tardy movements of the Peruvians. The
troops had been under arms since daylight, the
cavalry mounted, and the infantry at their post,
waiting in silence the coming of the Inca. A profound stillness reigned throughout the town, broken
only at intervals by the cry of the sentinel from
the summit of the fortress, as he proclaimed the
movements of the Indian army. Nothing, Pizarro
well knew, was so trying to the soldier as prolonged suspense, in a critical situation like the
present; and he feared lest his ardor might evaporate, and be succeeded by that nervous feeling
natural to the bravest soul at such a crisis, and
which, if not fear, is near akin to it.6 He returned
(Relacion del Primer. Descub., in estimating the irregular and
MS.) To Pizarro's secretary, as tumultuous levies of a barbarian
they lay encamped along the hills, host.
they seemed about 30,000. (Xe-  6 Pedro Pizarro says that an
rez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, Indian spy reported to Atahuallpa,
tom. III. p. 196.) However grati- that the white men were all hudfying to the imagination to repose died together in the great halls on
on some precise number, it is very the square, in much consternation,
rare that one can do so with safety, llenos de miedo, which was not far




412                CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BOOK III.
an answer, therefore, to Atahuallpa, deprecating his
change of purpose; and adding that he had provided every thing for his entertainment, and expected him that night to sup with him.7
This message turned the Inca from his purpose;
and, striking his tents again, he resumed his march,
first advising the general that he should leave the
greater part of his warriors behind, and enter the
place with only a few of them, and without arms,8
as he preferred to pass the night at Caxamalca. At
the same time he ordered accommodations to be provided for himself and his retinue in one of the large
stone buildings, called, from a serpent sculptured on
the walls, "the House of the Serpent.99-           No   tidings could have been more grateful to the Spaniards.   It seemed    as if the    Indian monarch     was
eager to rush into the snare that had been spread
for him! The fanatical cavalier could not fail to
discern in it the immediate finger of Providence
It is difficult to account for this wavering con
duct of Atahuallpa, so different from the bold and
from the truth, adds the cavalier.  8 c 1l queria vernir luego, e
(Descub. y Conq., MS.)        que venia sin armas. E luego
7 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Atabaliva se movio para venir, e
Conq., MS.                    dej6 alli la gente con las armas, 6
"Asentados sus toldos envi6 a leI' consigo hasta cinco 6 seis mil
decir al gobernador que ya era indios sin armas, salvo que debajo
tarde, que 61 queria dormir alli, de las camisetas traian unas porras
que por la manana vernia: el go- pequenas, 6 hondas, 6 bolsas con
bernador le envi6 a decir qu e e piedras." Cartade Hem. Pizarro,
rogaba que viniese luego, porque MS.
le esperaba a cenar, e que no habia  9 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap
de cenar, hasta que fuese." Carta Barcia, tom. TI. p. 197.
de Hem..Piza.o, MS.




CH. V.] ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS.  413
decided character which history ascribes to him.
There is no doubt that he made his visit to the
white men in perfect good faith; though Pizarro
was probably right in conjecturing that this amiable disposition stood on a very precarious footing.
There is as little reason to suppose that he distrusted the sincerity of the strangers; or he would not
thus unnecessarily have proposed to visit them unarmed. His original purpose of coming with all
his force was doubtless to display his royal state,
and perhaps, also, to show greater respect for the
Spaniards; but when he consented to accept their
hospitality, and pass the night in their quarters, he
was willing to dispense with a great part of his
armed soldiery, and visit them in a manner that implied entire confidence in their good faith. He was
too absolute in his own empire easily to suspect;
and he probably could not comprehend the audacity
with which a few men, like those now assembled
in Caxamalca, meditated an assault on a powerful
monarch in the midst of his victorious army. He
did not know the character of the Spaniard.
It was not long before sunset, when the van of
the royal procession entered the gates of the city.
First came some hundreds of the menials, employed
to clear the path from every obstacle, and singing
songs of triumph as they came, "which, in our
ears," says one of the Conquerors, "sounded like the
songs of hell "! 10 Then followed other bodies of dif10 Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




414                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [BOOK I11
ferent ranks, and dressed in different liveries. Some
wore a showy stuff, checkered white and red, like
the squares of a chess-board." Others were clad in
pure white, bearing hammers or maces of silver or
copper;12 and      the  guards, together with those in
immediate attendance on the prince, were distinguished by a rich azure livery, and a profusion of
gay ornaments, while the large pendants attached
to the ears indicated the Peruvian noble.
Elevated high above his vassals came the Inca
Atahuallpa, borne on a sedan or open litter, on which
was a sort of throne made of massive gold of inestimable value.l3 The palanquin was lined with the
richly colored plumes of tropical birds, and studded
with    shining  plates   of gold    and   silver.'4   The
monarch's attire was much richer than on the preceding evening. Round his neck was suspended
a collar of emeralds of uncommon size and brilliancy.15 His short hair was decorated with golden
ornaments, and the imperial borla encircled his
1 1c' Blanca y colorada como las de Pluma de Papagaios, de muchas
casas de un ajedrez." Ibid., MS.  colores, guarnecida de chapas de
12 ", Con martillos en las manos Oro, i Plata."  Xerez, Conq. del
de cobre y plata." Ibid., MS.  Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 198.
13 i" El asiento que traia sobre  15 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
las andas era un tablon de oro que Conq., MS.
peso un quintal de oro segun dicen  Venia la persona de Atabalica,
los historiadores 25,000 pesos 6 la cual traian ochenta Sefiores en
ducados." Naharro, Relacion Su- hombros todos bestidos de una
maria, MS.                     librea azul muy rica, y el bestido
14 ", Luego venia mucha Gente su persona muy ricamente con su
con Armaduras, Patenas, i Coronas corona en la cabeza, y al cuello un
de oro i Plata: entre estos venia collar de emeraldas grandes." ReAtabaliba, en una Litera, aforrada lacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




CH. V.] ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS.  415
temples. The bearing of the Inca was sedate and
dignified; and from his lofty station he looked
down on the multitudes below with an air of composure, like one accustomed to command.
As the leading files of the procession entered the
great square, larger, says an old chronicler, than any
square in Spain, they opened to the right and left
for the royal retinue to pass.  Every thing was
conducted with admirable order.  The monarch
was permitted to traverse the plaza in silence, and
not a Spaniard was to be seen. When some five
or six thousand of his people had entered the place,
Atahuallpa halted, and, turning round with an inquiring look, demanded, "Where are the strangers?"
At this moment Fray Vicente de Valverde, a
Dominican friar, Pizarro's chaplain, and afterward
Bishop of Cuzco, came forward with his breviary,
or, as other accounts say, a Bible, in one hand, and
a crucifix in the other, and, approaching the Inca,
told him, that he came by order of his commander
to expound to him the doctrines of the true faith,
for which purpose the Spaniards had come from a
great distance to his country. The friar then explained, as clearly as he could, the mysterious doctrine of the Trinity, and, ascending high in his account, began with the creation of man, thence passed
to his fall, to his subsequent redemption by Jesus
Christ, to the crucifixion, and the ascension, when
the Saviour left the Apostle Peter as his Vicegerent
upon earth. This power had been transmitted to




416               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BooK III.
the successors of the Apostle, good and wise men,
who, under the title of Popes, held authority over all
powers and potentates on earth. One of the last
of these Popes had commissioned the Spanish emperor, the most mighty monarch in the world, to
conquer and convert the natives in this western
hemisphere; and his general, Francisco Pizarro, had
now come to execute this important mission. The
friar concluded with beseeching the Peruvian monarch to receive him kindly; to abjure the errors of
his own faith, and embrace that of the Christians
now proffered to him, the only one by which he
could hope for salvation; and, furthermore, to acknowledge himself a tributary of the Emperor
Charles the Fifth, who, in that event, would aid
and protect him as his loyal vassal.'6
Whether Atahuallpa possessed himself of every
link in the curious chain of argument by which the
monk    connected Pizarro with      St. Peter, may be
doubted. It is certain, however, that he must have
had very incorrect notions of the Trinity, if, as Garcilasso states, the interpreter Felipillo explained it
by saying, that "the Christians believed in three
Gods and one God, and that made four."'7            But
16 Montesinos says that Valverde But I have followed the report of
read to the Inca the regular formu- Fray Naharro, who collected his
la used by the Spaniards in their information from the actors in the
Conquests. (Annales, MS., ano tragedy, and whose minuter state1533.) But that address, though ment is corroborated by the more
absurd enough, did not comprehend general testimony of both the Pithe whole range of theology as- zarros and the secretary Xerez.
cribed to the chaplain on this occa-  17 " Por dezir Dios trino y uno
sion. Yet it is not impossible. dido Dios tres y uno son quatro




Cu. V.] ATAHUALLPA VISITS THE SPANIARDS.  417
there is no doubt he perfectly comprehended that
the drift of the discourse was to persuade him to
resign his sceptre and acknowledge the supremacy
of another.
The eyes of the Indian monarch flashed fire, and
his dark brow grew darker as he replied, - "I will
be no man's tributary. I am   greater than any
prince upon earth. Your emperor may be a great
prince; I do not doubt it, when I see that he has
sent his subjects so far across the waters; and I am
willing to hold him as a brother. As for the Pope
of whom you speak, he must be crazy to talk of
giving away countries which do not belong to him.
For my faith," he continued, " I will not change it.
Your own God, as you say, was put to death by the
very men whom he created. But mine," he concluded, pointing to his Deity, - then, alas! sinking
in glory behind the mountains, - "my God still
lives in the heavens, and looks down on his children." 18
He then demanded of Valverde by what authority he had said these things. The friar pointed to
the book which he held, as his authority. Atahuallpa, taking it, turned over the pages a moment,
then, as the insult he had received probably flashed
across his mind, he threw it down with vehemence,
and exclaimed, —" Tell your comrades that they
sumando los numeros por darse & the reader will find extracts in the
entender." Cor. Real., Parte 2, original from several contemporary
lib. 1, cap. 23.        MSS., relating to the capture of
18 See Appendix, No. 8, where Atahuallpa.
VOL. I.        53




418                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                 [BOOx III.
shall give me an account of their doings in my
land. I will not go from here, till they have made
me full satisfaction for all the wrongs they have
committed." 19
The friar, greatly scandalized by the indignity
offered to the sacred volume, stayed only to pick it
up, and, hastening to Pizarro, informed him of what
had been done, exclaiming, at the same time, —
" Do you not see, that, while we stand here wasting
our breath in talking with this dog, full of pride
as he is, the fields are filling with Indians? Set
on, at once;      I absolve     you.9 20    Pizarro    saw   that
19 Some accounts describe him Ilenos de Indios 1 Salidael, —que
as taxing the Spaniards in much   yo os absuelvo."   (Relacion del
more unqualified terms.  (See Ap- Primer. Descub., MS.)   The hispendix, No. 8.)  But language is torian should be slow in ascribing
not likely to be accurately reported  conduct so diabolical to Father
in such seasons of excitement. -  Valverde, without evidence. Two
According   to some authorities, of the Conquerors present, Pedro
Atahuallpa let the volume drop by  Pizarro and Xerez, simply state
accident.  (Montesinos, Annales, that the monk reported to his conMS., ario 1533. —Balboa, Hist. mander the indignity offered to
du Perou, chap. 22.)    But the   the sacred volume. But Hernando
testimony, as far as we have it, of Pizarro and the author of the Rethose present, concurs in repre- lacion del Primer. Descub., both
senting it as stated in the text. eyewitnesses, and Naharro, Zarate,
And, if he spoke with the heat im- Gomara, Balboa, Herrera, the Inca
puted to him, this act would only  Titucussi Yupanqui, all of whom
be in keeping.                    obtained  their information from
20 " Visto esto por el Frayle y  persons who were eyewitnesses,
lo poco que aprovechaban sus pala- state the circumstance, with little
bras, tom6 su libro, y abaj6 su   variation, as in the text. Yet
cabeza, y fuese para donde estaba  Oviedo indorses the account of
el dicho Pizarro, casi corriendo, y  Xerez, and Garcilasso de la Vega
dijole: No veis lo que pasa: para insists on Valverde's innocence of
que estais en comedimientos y re- any attempt to rouse the passions
querimientos con este perro lleno  of his comrades.
de soberbia que vienen los campos




CH. V.]       HORRIBLE MASSACRE.          419
the hour had come. He waved a white scarf in
the air, the appointed signal. The fatal gun was
fired from the fortress. Then, springing into the
square, the Spanish captain and his followers shouted the old war-cry of " St. Jago and at them."
It was answered by the battle-cry of every Spaniard in the city, as, rushing from the avenues of
the great halls in which they were concealed, they
poured into the plaza, horse and foot, each in his
own dark column, and threw themselves into the
midst of the Indian crowd. The latter, taken by
surprise, stunned by the report of artillery and muskets, the echoes of which reverberated like thunder
from the surrounding buildings, and blinded by the
smoke which rolled in sulphurous volumes along the
square, were seized with a panic. They knew not
whither to fly for refuge from the coming ruin.
Nobles and commoners, - all were trampled down
under the fierce charge of the cavalry, who dealt
their blows, right and left, without sparing; while
their swords, flashing through the thick gloom, carried dismay into the hearts of the wretched natives, who now, for the first time, saw the horse
and his rider in all their terrors. They made no
resistance, - as, indeed, they had no weapons with
which to make it. Every avenue to escape was
closed, for the entrance to the square was choked
up with the dead bodies of men who had perished
in vain efforts to fly; and, such was the agony
of the survivors under the terrible pressure of their
assailants, that a large body of Indians, by their




420                CONQUEST OF PERU.              [BOOK III
convulsive struggles, burst through the wall of stone
and dried clay which formed part of the boundary
of the plaza!       It fell, leaving an opening of more
than a hundred paces, through which multitudes
now found their way into the country, still hotly
pursued by the cavalry, who, leaping the fallen
rubbish, hung on the rear of the fugitives, striking
them down in all directions.2'
Meanwhile the fight, or rather massacre, continued hot around the Inca, whose person was the
great object of the      assault.   His faithful nobles,
rallying about him, threw themselves in the way of
the assailants, and strove, by tearing them from
their saddles, or, at least, by       offering their own
bosoms as a mark for their vengeance, to shield
their beloved master.     It is said by some authorities,
that they carried weapons concealed under their
clothes.   If so, it availed them     little, as it is not
pretended that they used them. But the most
timid animal will defend itself when at bay. That
they did not so in the present instance is proof that
they had no weapons to use.22         Yet they still con21 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Primero Descubrimiento speaks of
Conq., MS.-Xerez, Conq. del a few as having bows and arrows,
Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 198. and of others as armed with silver
- Carta de Hern. Pizarro, MS.-  and copper mallets or maces, which
Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, MS., may, however, have been more for
Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 7.- Relacion ornament than for service in fight.
del Primer. Descub., MS.-Za- — Pedro Pizarro and some later
rate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, cap. 5. writers say that the Indians brought
- Instruccion del Inga Titucussi thongs with them to bind the capYupanqui, MS.                 tive white men. - Both Hernando
a2 The author of the Relacion del Pizarro and the secretary Xerez




CH. V.]          HORRIBLE MASSACRE.               421
tinued to force back the cavaliers, clinging to their
horses with dying grasp, and, as one was cut down,
another taking the place of his fallen comrade with
a loyalty truly affecting.
The Indian monarch, stunned and bewildered,
saw his faithful subjects falling round him without
fully comprehending his situation. The litter on
which he rode heaved to and fro, as the mighty
press swayed backwards and forwards; and he
gazed on the overwhelming ruin, like some forlorn
mariner, who, tossed about in his bark by the furious elements, sees the lightning's flash and hears
the thunder bursting around him with the consciousness that he can do nothing to avert his fate.      At
length, weary with the work of destruction, the
Spaniards, as the shades of evening grew       deeper,
felt afraid that the royal prize might, after all, elude
them; and some of the cavaliers made a desperate
attempt to end the affray at once by taking Atahuallpa's life. But Pizarro, who was nearest his
person, called out with Stentorian voice, "Let no
one, who values his life, strike at the Inca 7;23 and,
stretching out his arm to shield him, received a
wound on the hand from one of his own men, -the
only wound received by a Spaniard in the action.24
agree that their only arms were agree that no attempt was made at
secreted under their clothes; but resistance.
as they do not pretend that these  23," El marquez dio bozes diwere used, and as it was announced ciendo. Nadie hiera al indio so
by the Inca that he came without pena de la vida." Pedro Pizarro,
arms, the assertion may well be Descub. y Conq., MS.
doubted, -or rather discredited.  24 Whatever discrepancy exists
All authorities, without exception, among the Castilian accounts in




422                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                [BOOK III.
The struggle now became fiercer than ever round
the royal litter.     It reeled   more and     more, and     at
length, several of the nobles who supported it having been slain, it was overturned, and the Indian
prince would have come with violence to the ground,
had not his fall been broken by the efforts of Pizarro
and some other of the cavaliers, who caught him
in their arms. The imperial borla was instantly
snatched     from   his  temples     by   a  soldier    named
Estete,25 and the unhappy monarch, strongly seother respects, all concur in this vaders from the first with supreme
remarkable fact,-that no Span- deference, as descendants of Viraiard, except their general, received  cocha, predicted by his oracles as to
a wound on that occasion. Pizarro  come and rule over the land. But
saw in this a satisfactory argument if this flattering homage had been
for regarding the Spaniards, this paid by the Inca, it would never
day, as under the especial protec- have escaped the notice of the
tion of Providence. See Xerez, Conquerors. Garcilasso had read
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. the Commentaries of Cort6s, as he
III. p. 199.                     somewhere tells us; and it is prob25 Miguel Estete, who long re- able that that general's account,
tained the silken diadem as a tro- well founded, it appears, of a simiphy of the exploit, according to lar superstition among the Aztecs
Garcilasso de la Vega,   (Com. suggested to the historian the idea
Real., Parte 2, lib. 1, cap. 27,) an  of a corresponding sentiment in the
indifferent authority for any thing  Peruvians, which, while it flatterin this part of his history. This ed the vanity of the Spaniards, in
popular writer, whose work, from  some degree vindicated his own
his superior knowledge of the in- countrymen from  the charge of
stitutions of the country, has ob- cowardice, incurred by their too
tained greater credit, even in what ready submission; for, however
relates to the Conquest, than the they might be called on to resist
reports of the Conquerors them- men, it would have been madness
selves, has indulged in the roman- to resist the decrees of Heaven.
tic vein to an unpardonable extent, Yet Garcilasso's romantic version
in his account of the capture of has something in it so pleasing to
Atahuallpa. According to him, the the imagination, that it has ever
Peruvian monarch treated the in- found favor with the majority of




CH. V.]          THE INCA A PRISONER.                   423
cured, was removed         to  a  neighbouring     building,
where he was carefully guarded.
All attempt at resistance now ceased. The fate
of the Inca soon spread over town and country.
The charm which might have held the Peruvians
together was dissolved. Every man thought only
of his own safety. Even the soldiery encamped on
the adjacent fields took the alarm, and, learning the
fatal tidings, were seen flying in every direction
before their pursuers, who in the heat of triumph
showed no touch of mercy. At length night, more
pitiful than man, threw her friendly mantle over the
fugitives, and the scattered troops of Pizarro rallied
once more at the sound of the trumpet in the bloody
square of Caxamalca.
The number of slain is reported, as usual, with
great discrepancy. Pizarro's secretary says two
thousand natives fell.26 A descendant of the Incas - a safer authority than Garcilasso - swells the
number to ten thousand.27       Truth is generally found
readers.  The  English  student two hundred folio pages, is signed
might have met with a sufficient by a Peruvian Inca, grandson of
corrective in the criticism of the the great Huayna Capac, and
sagacious and skeptical Robertson. nephew, consequently, of Ata26 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. huallpa. It was written in 1570,
Barcia, tom. III. p. 199.      and designed to set forth to his
27 " Los mataron a todos con Majesty Philip II. the claims of
los Cavallos con espadas con area- Titucussi and the members of his
buzes como quien mata ovejas-  family to the royal bounty. In
sin hacerles nadie resistencia que the course of the Memorial, the
no se escaparon de mas de diez writer takes occasion to recapitumil, doscientos." Instruc. del Inga late some of the principal events in
Titucussi, MS.                 the latter years of the empire; and
This document, consisting of though sufficiently prolix to tax




424                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [BOOK III.
somewhere between the extremes. The slaughter
was incessant, for there was nothing to check it.
That there should have been no resistance will not
appear strange, when we consider the fact, that the
wretched victims were without arms, and that their
senses must have been completely overwhelmed by
the strange and appalling spectacle which burst on
them so unexpectedly. "What wonder was it,"
said an ancient Inca to a Spaniard, who repeats it,
"' what wonder that our countrymen lost their wits,
seeing blood run like water, and the Inca, whose
person we all of us adore, seized and carried off by
a handful of men?""3         Yet though     the massacre
was incessant, it was short in duration.        The whole
time consumed by it, the brief twilight of the tropics, did not much exceed half an hour; a short
period, indeed, - yet long enough to decide the fate
of Peru, and to subvert the dynasty of the Incas.
That night Pizarro kept his engagement with the
Inca, since    he  had   Atahuallpa    to sup with him.
even the patience of Philip II., it slaught. It consisted of a woman
is of much value as an historical and a child, and, at their side, a
document, coming from one of the horseman all clothed in white on a
royal race of Peru.            milk-white charger, -  doubtless
28 Montesinos, Annales, MS., the valiant St. James, — who, with
ano 1532.                      his sword glancing lightning, smote
According to Naharro, the In- down the infidel host, and rendered
dians were less astounded by the them incapable of resistance. This
wild uproar caused by the sudden  miracle the good father reports on
assault of the Spaniards, though  the testimony of three of his Order,
" this was such that it seemed as who were present in the action,
if the very heavens were falling,"  and who received it from numberthan by a terrible apparition which less of the natives. Relacion Suappeared in the air during the on- maria, MS.




CH. V.]       THE INCA A PRISONER.           425
The banquet was served in one of the halls facing
the great square, which a few hours before had been
the scene of slaughter, and the pavement of which
was still encumbered with the dead bodies of the
Inca's subjects. The captive monarch was placed
next his conqueror.  He seemed like one who did
not yet fully comprehend the extent of his calamity.
If he did, he showed an amazing fortitude.    "It
is the fortune of war," he said;29 and, if we may
credit the Spaniards, he expressed his admiration of
the adroitness with which they had contrived to
entrap him in the midst of his own troops.39 He
added, that he had been made acquainted with the
progress of the white men from the hour of their
landing; but that he had been led to undervalue
their strength from the insignificance of their numbers. He had no doubt he should be easily able to
overpower them, on their arrival at Caxamalca, by
his superior strength; and, as he wished to see for
himself what manner of men they were, he had
suffered them to cross the mountains, meaning to
select such as he chose for his own service, and,
getting possession of their wonderful arms and
horses, put the rest to death.3'
That such may have been Atahuallpa's purpose
29 1" Diciendo que era uso de  31 " And in my opinion," adds
Guerra veneer, i ser vencido." the Conqueror who reports the
Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 5, speech, "he had good grounds for
lib. 2, cap. 12.         believing he could do this, since
30," Haciendo admiracion de la nothing but the miraculous intertraza que tenia hecha." Relacion position of Heaven could have
del Primer. Descub., MS.  saved us." Ibid., MS.
VOL. I.         54




426            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
is not improbable.  It explains his conduct in not
occupying the mountain passes, which afforded such
strong points of defence against invasion. But that
a prince so astute, as by the general testimony of
the Conquerors he is represented to have been,
should have made so impolitic a disclosure of his
hidden motives is not so probable. The intercourse
with the Inca was carried on chiefly by means of
the interpreter Felipillo, or little Philip, as he was
called, from his assumed Christian name, - a malicious youth, as it appears, who bore no good-will
to Atahuallpa, and whose interpretations were readily admitted by the Conquerors, eager to find some
pretext for their bloody reprisals.
Atahuallpa, as elsewhere noticed, was, at this
time, about thirty years of age. He was well made,
and more robust than usual with his countrymen.
His head was large, and his countenance might
have been called handsome, but that his eyes, which
were bloodshot, gave a fierce expression to his features. He was deliberate in speech, grave in manner, and towards his own people stern even to severity; though with the Spaniards he showed himself
affable, sometimes even indulging in sallies of mirth.32
Pizarro paid every attention to his royal captive,
and endeavoured to lighten, if he could not dispel,
the gloom which, in spite of his assumed equanimity, hung over the monarch's brow.   He besought him not to be cast down by his reverses, for
32 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 203




CH. V.]   CONDUCT OF THE CONQUERORS.      427
his lot had only been that of every prince who had
resisted the white men. They had come into the
country to proclaim the gospel, the religion of Jesus Christ; and it was no wonder they had prevailed, when his shield was over them. Heaven had
permitted that Atahuallpa's pride should be humbled, because of his hostile intentions towards the
Spaniards, and the insults he had offered to the
sacred volume. But he bade the Inca take courage and confide in him, for the Spaniards were a
generous race, warring only against those who made
war on them, and showing grace to all who submitted! 33 - Atahuallpa may have thought the massacre of that day an indifferent commentary on
this vaunted lenity.
Before retiring for the night, Pizarro briefly addressed his troops on their present situation. When
he had ascertained that not a man was wounded, he bade them offer up thanksgivings to Providence for so great a miracle; without its care,
they could never have prevailed so easily over the
host of their enemies; and he trusted their lives
had been reserved for still greater things. But if
they would succeed, they had much to do for themselves.  They were in the heart of a powerful
kingdom, encompassed by foes deeply attached to
their own sovereign. They must be ever on their
guard, therefore, and be prepared at any hour to be
33 " Nosotros vsamos de piedad nos la hacen, i pudiendolos destruir,
con nuestros Enemigos vencidos, i no lo hacemos, antes los perdonano hacemos Guerra, sino a los que mos." Ibid., tom. III. p. 199.




428            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
roused from their slumbers by the call of the trumpet.34 — Having then posted his sentinels, placed a
strong guard over the apartment of Atahuallpa,
and taken all the precautions of a careful commander, Pizarro withdrew to repose; and, if he
could really feel, that, in the bloody scenes of the
past day, he had been fighting only the good fight
of the Cross, he doubtless slept sounder than on
the night preceding the seizure of the Inca.
On the following morning, the first commands
of the Spanish chief were to have the city cleansed of its impurities; and the prisoners, of whom
there were many in the camp, were employed to
remove the dead, and give them decent burial.
His next care was to despatch a body of about
thirty horse to the quarters lately occupied by Atahuallpa at the baths, to take possession of the spoil,
and disperse the remnant of the Peruvian forces
which still hung about the place.
Before noon, the party which he had detached on
this service returned with a large troop of Indians,
men and women, among the latter of whom were
many of the wives and attendants of the Inca.
The Spaniards had met with no resistance; since
the Peruvian warriors, though so superior in number,
excellent in appointments, and consisting mostly of
able-bodied young men,-for the greater part of the
veteran forces were with the Inca's generals at the
south, -lost all heart from the moment of their
34 Ibid., ubi supra. - Pedro Pizarro, Descub. i Conq., MS.




CH. V.]    CONDUCT OF THE CONQUERORS.           429
sovereign's captivity. There was no leader to take
his place; for they recognized no authority but that
of the Child of the Sun, and they seemed to be
held by a sort of invisible charm near the place of
his confinement; while they gazed with superstitious awe on the white men, who could achieve
so audacious an enterprise.35
The number of Indian prisoners was so great,
that some of the Conquerors were for putting them
all to death, or, at least, cutting off their hands, to
disable them from acts of violence, and to strike terror into their countrymen.36 The proposition, doubtless, came from the lowest and most ferocious of
the soldiery. But that it should have been made at
all shows what materials entered into the composition of Pizarro's company. The chief rejected it
at once, as no less impolitic than inhuman, and dismissed the Indians to their several homes, with the
assurance that none should be harmed who did not
offer resistance  to the white men.     A  sufficient
number, however, were retained to wait on the
Conquerors, who were so well provided, in this
35 From this time, says Onde- an amiable fancy, among the angardo, the Spaniards, who hitherto cient Greeks, that " the stranger
had been designated as the " men came from Jupiter."
with beards," barbudos, were called,~.    a [Ilpos yap Adlo esicv rravres
by the natives, from their fair-com-  ~,,.  c
*,,.',.., p.   Xc ivol re."  O/Y2. ~, v. 57.
plexioned deity, Viracochas. The 
people of Cuzco, who bore no good-  36 ", Algunos fueron de opinion,
will to the captive Inca, " looked que matasen a todos los Hombres
upon the strangers," says the au- de Guerra, 6 les cortasen las mathor, " as sent by Viracocha him- nos." Xerez, Hist. del Peru, ap.
self." (Rel. Prim., MS.) It re- Barcia, tom. III. p. 200.
minds us of a superstition, or rather




430               CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BOOK III.
respect, that the most common soldier was attended
by a retinue of menials that would have better
suited the establishment of a noble.37
The Spaniards had found immense droves of
llamas under the care of their shepherds in the
neighbourhood of the baths, destined for the consumption of the Court. Many of them were now
suffered to roam abroad among their native mountains; though Pizarro caused a considerable number to be reserved for the use of the army. And
this was no small quantity, if, as one of the Conquerors says, a hundred and fifty of the Peruvian
sheep were frequently slaughtered in a day.38 Indeed, the Spaniards were so improvident in their
destruction of these animals, that, in a few years,
the superb flocks, nurtured with so much care by
the Peruvian government, had almost disappeared
from the land.39
The party sent to pillage the Inca's pleasurehouse brought back a rich booty in gold and silver, consisting chiefly of plate for the royal table,
which greatly astonished the Spaniards by their
size and weight. These, as well as some large
emeralds obtained there, together with the precious
37 " Cada Espanol de los que i cinquenta." Xerez, Conq. del
alli ivan tomaron para si mui gran Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 202.
cantidad tanto que como andava  39 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap.
todo a rienda suelta havia Espanol 80.- Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., MS.
que tenia docientas piezas de Indios  1" Hasta que los destruian todos
i Indias de servicio." Conq. i Pob. sin haver Espanol ni Justicia que
del Piru, MS.               lo defendiese ni amparase." Conq.
38 " Se matan cada Dia, ciento i Pob. del Piru, MS.




CH. V.]   CONDUCT OF THE CONQUERORS.        431
spoils found on the bodies of the Indian nobles
who had perished in the massacre, were placed in
safe custody, to be hereafter divided.  In the city
of Caxamalca, the troops also found magazines
stored with goods, both cotton and woollen, far
superior to any they had seen, for fineness of
texture, and the skill with which the various colors
were blended. They were piled from the floors to
the very roofs of the buildings, and in such quantity, that, after every soldier had provided himself
with what he desired, it made no sensible diminution of the whole amount.4
Pizarro would now gladly have directed his march
on the Peruvian capital. But the distance was
great, and his force was small. This must have
been still further crippled by the guard required for
the Inca, and the chief feared to involve himself
deeper in a hostile empire so populous and powerful, with a prize so precious in his keeping. With
much anxiety, therefore, he looked for reinforcements from the colonies; and he despatched a
courier to San Miguel, to inform the Spaniards
there of his recent successes, and to ascertain if
there had been any arrival from Panama.   Meanwhile he employed his men in making Caxamalca
a more suitable residence for a Christian host, by
40 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. de tiendas y ropas de lana y algoBarcia, tom. III. p. 200.  don eran en tan gran cantidad, que
There was enough, says the a mi parecer fueran menester muanonymous Conqueror, for several chos navios en que supieran."
ship-loads. " Todas estas cosas Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




432           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK 1II.
erecting a church, or, perhaps, appropriating some
Indian edifice to this use, in which mass was regularly performed by the Dominican fathers, with
great solemnity. The dilapidated walls of the city
were also restored in a more substantial manner
than before, and every vestige was soon effaced of
the hurricane that had so recently swept over it.
It was not long before Atahuallpa discovered,
amidst all the show of religious zeal in his Conquerors, a lurking appetite more potent in most of their
bosoms than either religion or ambition. This was
the love of gold. He determined to avail himself
of it to procure his own freedom. The critical
posture of his affairs made it important that this
should not be long delayed. His brother Huascar,
ever since his defeat, had been detained as a prisoner, subject to the victor's orders. He was now at
Andamarca, at no great distance from Caxamalca;
and Atahuallpa feared, with good reason, that, when
his own imprisonment was known, Huascar would
find it easy to corrupt his guards, make his escape,
and put himself at the head of the contested empire,
without a rival to dispute it.
In the hope, therefore, to effect his purpose by
appealing to the avarice of his keepers, he one day
told Pizarro, that, if he would set him free, he would
engage to cover the floor of the apartment on which
they stood with gold. Those present listened with
an incredulous smile; and, as the Inca received no
answer, he said, with some emphasis, that "he
would not merely cover the floor, but would fill the




CH. V.]  SPLENDID PROMISES OF THE INCA.        43,3
room with gold as high as he could reach"; and,
standing on tiptoe, he stretched out his hand against
the wall. All stared with amazement; while they
regarded it as the insane boast of a man too eager
to procure his liberty to weigh the meaning of his
words. Yet Pizarro was sorely perplexed. As he
had advanced into the country, much that he had
seen, and all that he had heard, had confirmed
the dazzling reports first received of the riches of
Peru. Atahuallpa himself had given him the most
glowing picture of the wealth of the capital, where
the roofs of the temples were plated with gold,
while the walls were hung with tapestry and the
floors inlaid with tiles of the same precious metal.
There must be some foundation for all this.  At all
events, it was safe to accede to the Inca's proposition; since, by so doing, he could collect, at once,
all the gold at his disposal, and thus prevent its being purloined or secreted by the natives. He therefore acquiesced in Atahuallpa's offer, and, drawing a
red line along the wall at the height which the Inca
had indicated, he caused the terms of the proposal
to be duly recorded by the notary. The apartment
was about seventeen feet broad, by twenty-two feet
long, and the line round the walls was nine feet
from the floor.4' This space was to be filled with
41 I have adopted the dimensions long by seventeen or eighteen feet
given by the secretary Xerez, wide. (Carta, MS.) The most
(Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. moderate estimate is large enough.
III. p. 202.) According to Her-  Stevenson says that they still
nando Pizarro, the apartment was show " a large room, part of the
nine feet high, but thirty-five feet old palace, and now the residence
VOL. I.         55




434                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                  [BooIK III.
gold; but it was understood          that the    gold was not
to be melted down into ingots, but to retain the
original form    of the articles into which it was manufactured, that the Inca might have the benefit of the
space which they occupied. He further agreed to
fill an adjoining room of smaller dimensions twice
full with silver, in like manner; and he demanded
two months to accomplish all this.42
No sooner was this arrangement made, than the
Inca despatched couriers to Cuzco and the other
principal places in the kingdom, with orders that the
gold ornaments and utensils should be removed from
the royal palaces, and from the temples and other
public buildings, and transported without loss of
time to Caxamalca. Meanwhile he continued to live
of the Cacique Astopilca, where the  cap. 6. - Gomara, Hist. de las
ill-fated Inca was kept a prisoner "; Ind., cap. 114. - Herrera, Hist.
and he adds that the line traced  General, dec. 5, lib. 2, cap. 1.)
on the wall is still visible.  (Resi-  Both Naharro and Herrera state
dence in South America, vol. II. expressly that Pizarro  promised
p. 163.)  Peru abounds in remains  the Inca his liberation on fulfilling
as ancient as the Conquest; and it the compact. This is not confirmwould not be surprising that the  ed by the other chroniclers, who,
memory of a place so remarkable   however, do not intimate that the
as this should be preserved, -    Spanish general declined the terms.
though any thing but a memorial And as Pizarro, by all accounts, ento be cherished by the Spaniards.  couraged his prisoner to perform
42 The facts in the preceding   his part of the contract, it must
paragraph are told with remarkable  have been with the understanding
uniformity by the ancient chroni- implied, if not expressed, that he
clers.  (Conf. Pedro Pizarro, De- would abide by the other. It is
scub. y Conq., MS. -Carta de      most improbable that the    Inca
Hern. Pizarro, MS.-Xerez,Conq. would have stripped himself of his
del Peru, ap. Barcia, ubi supra. -  treasures, if he had not so underNaharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS. stood it.
- Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2,




CH. V.]  SPLENDID PROMISES OF THE INCA.    4&5
in the Spanish quarters, treated with the respect due
to his rank, and enjoying all the freedom that was
compatible with the security of his person. Though
not permitted to go abroad, his limbs were unshackled, and he had the range of his own apartments under the jealous surveillance of a guard, who
knew too well the value of the royal captive to be
remiss. He was allowed the society of his favorite
wives, and Pizarro took care that his domestic privacy should not be violated. His subjects had free
access to their sovereign, and every day he received
visits from the Indian nobles, who came to bring
presents, and offer condolence to their unfortunate master.  On such occasions, the most potent
of these great vassals never ventured into his presence, without first stripping off their sandals, and
bearing a load on their backs in token of reverence.
The Spaniards gazed with curious eyes on these
acts of homage, or rather of slavish submission,
on the one side, and on the air of perfect indifference with which they were received, as a matter of
course, on the other; and they conceived high ideas
of the character of a prince who, even in his present helpless condition, could inspire such feelings
of awe in his subjects. The royal levee was so
well attended, and such devotion was shown by his
vassals to the captive monarch, as did not fail, in
the end, to excite some feelings of distrust in his
keepers.43
43 RelaciondelPrimer. Descub., MS.-Zarate, Conq. del Peam
MIS.-Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, lib. 2, cap. 6.




X36             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOK III.
Pizarro did not neglect the opportunity afforded
him of communicating the truths of revelation to his
prisoner, and both he and his chaplain, Father Valverde, labored in the same good work. Atahuallpa
listened with composure and apparent attention.
But nothing seemed to move him so much as the
argument with which the military polemic closed his
discourse, -that it could not be the true God whom
Atahuallpa worshipped, since he had suffered him to
fall into the hands of his enemies. The unhappy
monarch assented to the force of this, acknowledging that his Deity had indeed deserted him in his
utmost need.44
Yet his conduct towards his brother Huascar, at
this time, too clearly proves, that, whatever respect
he may have shown for the teachers, the doctrines
of Christianity had made little impression on his
heart   No sooner had Huascar been informed of
the capture of his rival, and of the large ransom he
had offered for his deliverance, than, as the latter
had foreseen, he made every effort to regain his liberty, and sent, or attempted to send, a message to
the Spanish commander, that he would pay a much
larger ransom than that promised by Atahuallpa,
who, never having dwelt in Cuzco, was ignorant
of the quantity of treasure there, and where it was
deposited.
44 "I mas dijo Atabalipa, que su Idolo, no es Dios verdadero,
estaba espantado de lo que el Go- pues tan poco le aiud6." Xerez,
yernador ie havia dicho: que bien Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom.
conocia que aquel que hablaba en III. p. 203.




CHI. V.]      DEATH OF HUASCAR.          437
Intelligence of all this was secretly communicated
to Atahuallpa by the persons who had his brother
in charge; and his jealousy, thus roused, was further heightened by Pizarro's declaration, that he intended to have Huascar brought to Caxamalca,
where he would himself examine into the controversy, and determine which of the two had best title
to the sceptre of the Incas. Pizarro perceived, from
the first, the advantages of a competition which
would enable him, by throwing his sword into the
scale he preferred, to give it a preponderance. The
party who held the sceptre by his nomination would
henceforth be a tool in his hands, with which to
work his pleasure more effectually than he could
well do in his own name. It was the game, as
every reader knows, played by Edward the First in
the affairs of Scotland, and by many a monarch,
both before and since, -and though their examples
may not have been familiar to the unlettered soldier,
Pizarro was too quick in his perceptions to require,
in this matter, at least, the teachings of history.
Atahuallpa was much alarmed by the Spanish
commander's determination to have the suit between
the rival candidates brought before him; for he
feared, that, independently of the merits of the
case, the decision would be likely to go in favor of
Huascar, whose mild and ductile temper would
make him a convenient instrument in the hands of
his conquerors. Without further hesitation, he determined to remove this cause of jealousy for ever,
by the death of his brother.




438                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [BooK Ill.
His orders were immediately executed, and the
unhappy prince was drowned, as was commonly reported, in the river of Andamarca, declaring with his
dying breath that the white men would avenge his
murder, and that his rival would not long survive
him.45- Thus perished the unfortunate Huascar,
the legitimate heir of the throne of the Incas, in
the very morning of life, and the commencement of
his reign; a reign, however, which had been long
enough to call forth the display of many excellent
and amiable qualities, though his nature was too
gentle to cope with the bold and fiercer temper of
his brother. Such is the portrait we have of him
from the Indian and Castilian chroniclers, though
the former, it should be added, were the kinsmen
of Huascar, and the latter certainly bore no goodwill to Atahuallpa.46
That prince received the tidings of Huascar's
death with every mark of surprise and indignation.
He immediately sent for Pizarro, and communicated
45 Both the place and the man-  46 Both Garcilasso de la Vega
ner of Huascar's death are reported  and Titucussi Yupanqui were dewith much discrepancy by the his- scendants from Huayna Capac, of
torians. All agree in the one im- the pure Peruvian stock, the natuportant fact, that he died a violent ral enemies, therefore, of their
death at the instigation of his broth- kinsman of Quito, whom they reer. Conf. Herrera, Hist. General, garded as a usurper.  Circumdec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 2. - Xerez, stances brought the Castilians into
Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. direct collision with Atahuallpa,
III. p. 204. - Pedro Pizarro, De- and it was natural they should
scub. y Conq., MS. —Naharro, seek to darken his reputation by
Relacion Sumaria, MS. - Zarate, contrast with the fair character of
Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, cap. 6. -  his rival.
Instruc. del Inga Titucussi, MS




CH. V.]        DEATH OF HUASCAR.           439
the event to him with expressions of the deepest
sorrow. The Spanish commander refused, at first,
to credit the unwelcome news, and bluntly told the
Inca, that his brother could not be dead, and that
he should be answerable for his life.47 To this
Atahuallpa replied by renewed assurances of the
fact, adding that the deed had been perpetrated,
without his privity, by Huascar's keepers, fearful
that he might take advantage of the troubles of the
country to make his escape. Pizarro, on making
further inquiries, found that the report of his death
was but too true. That it should have been brought
about by Atahuallpa's officers, without his express
command, would only show, that, by so doing, they
had probably anticipated their master's wishes.
The crime, which assumes in our eyes a deeper
dye from the relation of the parties, had not the
same estimation among the Incas, in whose multitudinous families the bonds of brotherhood must
have sat loosely, - much too loosely to restrain the
arm of the despot from sweeping away any obstacle that lay in his path.
47 "1 Sabido esto por el Gober- sen luego vivo: i sino, que 61 mannador, mostr6, que le pesaba mu- daria matar a Atabalipa." Xerez,
cho: i dijo que era mentira, que Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom
no le havian muerto, que lo truje- III. p. 204.




CHAPTER VI.
GOLD ARRIVES FOR THE RANSOM.- VISIT TO PACHACAMAt -'1~.
LITION OF THE IDOL. -THE INCA'S FAVORITE GENSR1A, - T-IINCA'S LIFE IN CONFINEMENT. — ENVOYS' CONDUCT IN SCO. —3
ARRIVAL OF ALMAGRO.
1533.
SEVERAL weeks had now passed since Atahuallpa's emissaries had been despatched for the gold
and silver that were to furnish his ransom to the
Spaniards. But the distances were great, and the
returns came in slowly. They consisted, for the
most part, of massive pieces of plate, some of which
weighed two or three arrobas,- a Spanish weight
of twenty-five pounds. On some days, articles of
the value of thirty or forty thousand pesos de oro
were brought in, and, occasionally, of the value of
fifty or even sixty thousand pesos. The greedy
eyes of the Conquerors gloated on the shining
heaps of treasure, which were transported on the
shoulders of the Indian porters, and, after being
carefully registered, were placed in safe deposit under a strong guard. They now began to believe
that the magnificent promises of the Inca would be
fulfilled. But, asttheir avarice was sharpened by the
ravishing display of wealth, such as they had hardly




CH. VI.]  GOLD ARRIVES FOR THE RANSOM.    441
dared to imagine, they became more craving and
impatient. They made no allowance for the distance and the difficulties of the way, and loudly inveighed against the tardiness with which the royal
commands were executed. They even suspected
Atahuallpa of devising this scheme only to gain a
pretext for communicating with his subjects in distant places, and of proceeding as dilatorily as possible, in order to secure time for the execution of his
plans. Rumors of a rising among the Peruvians
were circulated, and the Spaniards were in apprehension of some general and sudden assault on their
quarters. Their new acquisitions gave them additional cause for solicitude; like a miser, they
trembled in the midst of their treasures.'
Pizarro reported to his captive the rumors that
were in circulation among the soldiers, naming, as
one of the places pointed out for the rendezvous of
the Indians, the neighbouring city of Guamachucho.
Atahuallpa listened with undisguised astonishment,
and indignantly repelled the charge, as false from
beginning to end. " No one of my subjects," said
he, "would dare to appear in arms, or to raise his
finger, without my orders. You have me," he continued, " in your power. Is not my life at your disposal? And what better security can you have for
my fidelity?" He then represented to the Spanish
commander, that the distances of many of the places
were very great; that to Cuzco, the capital, al1 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, maria, MS. - Xerez, Conq. del
cap. 6. -Naharro, Relacion Su- Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 204.
VOL. I.        56




4A2            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [Boox III.
though a message might be sent by post, through
a succession of couriers, in five days from Caxamalca, it would require weeks for a porter to travel over
the same ground, with a heavy load on his back.
" But that you may be satisfied I am proceeding in
good faith," he added, " I desire you will send some
of your own people to Cuzco. I will give them a
safe-conduct, and, when there, they can superintend
the execution of the commission, and see with their
own eyes that no hostile movements are intended."
It was a fair offer, and Pizarro, anxious to get more
precise and authentic information of the state of the
country, gladly availed himself of it.2
Before the departure of these emissaries, the general had despatched his brother Hernando with
about twenty horse and a small body of infantry to
the neighbouring town of Guamachucho, in order to
reconnoitre the country, and ascertain if there was
any truth in the report of an armed force having assembled there. Hernando found every thing quiet,
and met with a kind reception from the natives.
But before leaving the place, he received further orders from his brother to continue his march to Pachacamac, a town situated on the coast, at least a
hundred leagues distant from Caxamalca. It was
consecrated as the seat of the great temple of the
deity of that name, whom the Peruvians worshipped
as the Creator of the world, It is said that they
2 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y 203, 204.- Naharro, Relacion
Conq., MS.-Xerez, Conq. del Sumaria, MS.
Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. II. pp.




Ct. VI.]     VISIT TO PACHACAMAC.           44,
found there altars raised to this god, on their first
occupation of the country; and, such was the veneration in which he was held by the natives, that the
Incas, instead of attempting to abolish his worship,
deemed it more prudent to sanction it conjointly
with that of their own deity, the Sun. Side by side,
the two temples rose on the heights that overlooked
the city of Pachacamac, and prospered in the offerings of their respective votaries. "It was a cunning arrangement," says an ancient writer, " by
which the great enemy of man secured to himself a
double harvest of souls." 3
But the temple of Pachacamac continued to
maintain its ascendency; and the oracles, delivered
from its dark and mysterious shrine, were held in no
less repute among the natives of Tavantinsuyu, (or
"' the four quarters of the world," as Peru under the
Incas was called,) than the oracles of Delphi obtained among the Greeks. Pilgrimages were made to
the hallowed spot from the most distant regions, and
the city of Pachacamac became among the Peruvians what Mecca was among the Mahometans, or
Cholula with the people of Anahuac. The shrine
of the deity, enriched by the tributes of the pilgrims, gradually became one of the most opulent in
the land; and Atahuallpa, anxious to collect hi; ransom as speedily as possible, urged Pizarro to send a
3," El demonio Pachacama ale- otro era el seruido, y quedauan las
gre con este concierto, afirman que animas de los simples malauenturamostraua en sue respuestas gran dos presas en su poder." Cieza
contento: pues con lo vno y lo de Leon, Cronica, cap. 72.




444             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOK III,
detachment in that direction, to secure the treasures
before they could be secreted by the priests of the
temple.
It was a journey of considerable difficulty. Two
thirds of the route lay along the table-land of the
Cordilleras, intersected occasionally by crests of the
mountain range, that imposed no slight impediment
to their progress. Fortunately, much of the way,
they had the benefit of the great road to Cuzco, and
" nothing in Christendom," exclaims Hernando Pizarro, " equals the magnificence of this road across
the sierra."4  In some places, the rocky ridges were
so precipitous, that steps were cut in them for the
travellers; and though the sides were protected by
heavy stone balustrades or parapets, it was with the
greatest difficulty that the horses were enabled to
scale them. The road was frequently crossed by
streams, over which bridges of wood and sometimes of stone were thrown; though occasionally,
along the declivities of the mountains, the waters
swept down in such furious torrents, that the only
method of passing them was by the swinging
bridges of osier, of which, till now, the Spaniards
had had little experience. They were secured on
either bank to heavy buttresses of stone. But as
they were originally designed for nothing heavier
than the foot-passenger and the llama, and, as
they had something exceedingly fragile in their
4 "L El camino de las sierras es no se han visto tan hermosos camicosa de ver, porque en verdad en nos, toda la mayor parte dc calzatierra tan fragosa en la cristiandad da." Carta, MS.




CH. VI.]       VISIT TO PACHACAMAC.               445
appearance, the Spaniards hesitated to venture on
them with their horses. Experience, however, soon
showed they were capable of bearing a much greater weight; and though the traveller, made giddy
by the vibration of the long avenue, looked with a
reeling brain into the torrent that was tumbling at
the depth of a hundred feet or more below him, the
whole of the cavalry effected their passage without
an accident. At these bridges, it may be remarked,
they found persons stationed whose business it was
to collect toll for the government from all travellers.5
The Spaniards were amazed by the number as
well as magnitude of the flocks of llamas which
they saw browsing on the stunted herbage that
grows in the elevated regions of the Andes. Some
times they were gathered in inclosures, but more
usually were roaming at large under the conduct of
their Indian shepherds; and the Conquerors now
learned, for the first time, that these animals were
tended with as much care, and their migrations as
nicely regulated, as those of the vast flocks of merinos in their own country.6
5 " Todos los arroyos tienen capitanes: esta tienen siempre
puentes de piedra 6 de madera: en cerrada 6 indios que la guardan;
un rio grande, que era muy cauda- estos indios cobran portazgo de los
loso 4 muy grande, que pasamos que pasan." Carta de Hern. Pidos veces, hallamos puentes de zarro, MS. —Also Relacion del
red, que es cosa maravillosa de Primer. Descub., MS.
ver; pasamos por ellas los ca-  6 A comical blunder has been
ballos; tienen en cada pasaje dos made by the printer, in M. Terpuentes, la una por donde pasa la naux-Compans's excellent translagente comun, la otra por donde tion of Xerez, in the account of
pasa el senor de la tierra 6 sus this expedition. "On trouve sur




446             CONQUEST OF PERU.          [BooK III
The table-land and its declivities were thickly
sprinkled with hamlets and towns, some of them of
considerable size; and the country in every direction bore the marks of a thrifty husbandry. Fields
of Indian corn were to be seen in all its different
stages, from the green and tender ear to the yellow
ripeness of harvest time. As they descended into
the valleys and deep ravines that divided the crests
of the Cordilleras, they were surrounded by the
vegetation of a warmer climate, which delighted
the eye with the gay livery of a thousand bright
colors, and intoxicated the senses with its perfumes.
Everywhere the natural capacities of the soil were
stimulated by a minute system of irrigation, which
drew the fertilizing moisture from every stream and
rivulet that rolled down the declivities of the Andes; while the terraced sides of the mountains
were clothed with gardens and orchards that teemed
with fruits of various latitudes.   The Spaniards
could not sufficiently admire the industry with which
the natives had availed themselves of the bounty
of Nature, or had supplied the deficiency where she
had dealt with a more parsimonious hand.
Whether from the commands of the Inca, or from
the awe which their achievements had spread
throughout the land, the Conquerors were received,
in every place through which they passed, with
toute la route beaucoup de pores, well lead the reader into the error
de lamas." (Relation de la Con- of supposing.that swine existed in
quete du Perou, p. 157.) The Peru before.the Conquest.
substitution of porcs for parcs might




CH. VI.]      VISIT TO PACHACAMAC.          447
hospitable kindness.  Lodgings were provided for
them, with ample refreshments from the well-stored
magazines, distributed at intervals along the route.
In many of the towns the inhabitants came out to
welcome them with singing and dancing; and, when
they resumed their march, a number of able-bodied
porters were furnished to carry forward their baggage.7
At length, after some weeks of travel, severe
even with all these appliances, Hernando Pizarro
arrived before the city of Pachacamac. It was a
place of considerable population, and the edifices
were, many of them, substantially built. The temple of the tutelar deity consisted of a vast stone
building, or rather pile of buildings, which, clustering around a conical hill, had the air of a fortress
rather than a religious establishment. But, though
the walls were of stone, the roof was composed of
a light thatch, as usual in countries where rain
seldom or never falls, and where defence, consequently, is wanted chiefly against the rays of the
sun.
Presenting himself at the lower entrance of the
temple, Hernando Pizarro was refused admittance
by the guardians of the portal.  But, exclaiming
that " he had come too far to be stayed by the arm
7 Carta de Her. Pizarro, MS. inspector, accompanied Hernandt
- Estete, ap. Barcia, tor. ITI. pp. Pizarro on this expedition, and, of
206, 207. - Relacion del Primer. course, were eyewitnesses, like himDescub., MS.             self, of what they relate. Estete's
Both the last-cited author and narrative is incorporated by the
Miguel Estete, the royal veedor or secretary Xerez in his own.




448            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
of an Indian priest," he forced his way into the
passage, and, followed by his men, wound up the
gallery which led to an area on the summit of the
mount, at one end of which stood a sort of chapel
This was the sanctuary of the dread deity. The
door was garnished with ornaments of crystal, and
with turquoises and bits of coral.8  Here again the
Indians would have dissuaded Pizarro from   violating the consecrated precincts, when, at that
moment, the shock of an earthquake, that made
the ancient walls tremble to their foundation, so
alarmed the natives, both those of Pizarro's own
company and the people of the place, that they fled
in dismay, nothing doubting that their incensed deity
would bury the invaders under the ruins, or consume them with his lightnings. But no such terror
found its way into the breast of the Conquerors,
who felt that here, at least, they were fighting the
good fight of the Faith.
Tearing open the door, Pizarro and his party
entered. But instead of a hall blazing, as they had
fondly imagined, with gold and precious stones,
offerings of the worshippers of Pachacamac, they
found themselves in a small and obscure apartment, or rather den, from the floor and sides of
which steamed up the most offensive odors, - like
those of a slaughter-house.  It was the place of
sacrifice. A few pieces of gold and some emeralds
were discovered on the ground, and, as their eyes
8," Esta puerta era muy tejida quesas y cristales y otras cosas."
de diversas cosas de corales y tur- Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




CH. VI.]     DEMOLITION OF THE IDOL.        449
became accommodated to the darkness, they discerned in the most retired corner of the room the
figure of the deity. It was an uncouth monster,
made of wood, with the head resembling that of a
man. This was the god, through whose lips Satan
had breathed forth the far-famed oracles which had
deluded his Indian votaries! 9
Tearing the idol from its recess, the indignant
Spaniards dragged it into the open air, and there
broke it into a hundred fragments.  The place was
then purified, and a large cross, made of stone and
plaster, was erected on the spot. In a few years
the walls of the temple were pulled down by the
Spanish settlers, who found there a convenient
quarry for their own edifices.  But the cross still
remained spreading its broad arms over the ruins.
It stood where it was planted in the very heart of
the stronghold of Heathendom; and, while all was
in ruins around it, it proclaimed the permanent
triumphs of the Faith.
The simple natives, finding that Heaven had no
bolts in store for the Conquerors, and that their god
had no power to prevent the profanation of his
shrine, came in gradually and tendered their homage
to the strangers, whom they now regarded with
9 Aquel era Pachacama, el que venian en romeria, que es
cual les sanaba de sus enferme- cierto que del todo el Senorio de
dades, y a lo que alli se entendio, Atabalica iban alli, como los Moros
el Demonio aparecia en aquella y Turcos van a la casa de Meca."
cueba a aquellos sacerdotes y ha- Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.
blaba con ellos, y estos entraban — Also Estete, ap. Barcia, tom.
con las peticiones y ofrendas de los III. p. 209.
VOL. I.        57




460              CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK III.
feelings of superstitious awe. Pizarro profited by
this temper to wean them, if possible, from their
idolatry; and though no preacher himself, as he
tells us, he delivered a discourse as edifying, doubtless, as could be expected from the mouth of a soldier; 0 and, in conclusion, he taught them the sign
of the cross, as an inestimable talisman to secure
them against the future machinations of the Devil.1
But the Spanish commander was not so absorbed
in his spiritual labors as not to have an eye to those
temporal concerns for which he came into this quarter.  He now    found, to his chagrin, that he had
come somewhat too late; and that the priests of
Pachacamac, being     advised  of his mission, had
secured much the greater part of the gold, and
decamped with it before his arrival.      A  quantity
was afterwards discovered buried in the grounds
adjoining.'2  Still the amount obtained was considerable, falling little short of eighty thousand
castellanos, a sum which once would have been
deemed a compensation for greater fatigues than
they had encountered. But the Spaniards had become familiar with gold; and their imaginations,
kindled by the romantic adventures in which they
10,, e a falta de predicador les capitan Rodrigo Orgofez, y Franhice mi sermon, diciendo el engafo cisco de Godoy, y otros sacaron
en que vivian." Carta de Hern. gra summa de oro y plata de los
Pizarro, MS.                enterramientos. Y ann se presume
11 Ibid., MS. - Relacion del y tiene por cierto, que ay mucho
Primer. Descub., MS. -Estete, mas: pero como no se sabe donde
ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 209.  esta enterrado, se pierde." Cieza
12 " Y andando los tiepos el de Leon, Cronica, cap. 72.




Cn VI.]  THE INCA'S FAVORITE GENERAL.    451
had of late been engaged, indulged in visions which
all the gold of Peru would scarcely have realized.
One prize, however, Hernando obtained by his
expedition, which went far to console him for the
loss of his treasure.  While at Pachacamac, he
learned that the Indian commander Challcuchima
lay with a large force in the neighbourhood of Xauxa, a town of some strength at a considerable dis
tance among the mountains. This man, who was
nearly related to Atahuallpa, was his most expert
enced general, and together with Quizquiz, now at
Cuzco, had achieved those victories at the south
which placed the Inca on the throne.  From his
birth, his talents, and his large experience, he was
accounted second to no subject in the kingdom.
Pizarro was aware of the importance of securing
his person. Finding that the Indian noble declined
to meet him on his return, he determined to march
at once on Xauxa and take the chief in his own
quarters. Such a scheme, considering the enormous
disparity of numbers, might seem desperate even
for Spaniards. But success had given them such
confidence, that they hardly condescended to calculate chances.
The road across the mountains presented greater
difficulties than those on the former march. To
add to the troubles of the cavalry, the shoes of their
horses were worn out, and their hoofs suffered severely on the rough and stony ground. There was no
iron at hand, nothing but gold and silver. In the
present emergency they turned even these to ac



452                CONQUEST OF PERU.              [BOOK III.
count; and Pizarro caused the horses of the whole
croop to be shod with silver. The work was done
by the Indian smiths, and it answered so well,
that in this precious material they found a substitute for iron during the remainder of the march."3
Xauxa was a large and populous place; though
we shall hardly credit the assertion of the Conquerors, that a hundred thousand persons assembled
habitually in the    great square of the city.'4       The
Peruvian commander was encamped, it was said,
with an army      of five-and-thirty    thousand men at
only a few miles' distance from the town With
some difficulty he was persuaded to an interview
with Pizarro. The latter addressed him courteously,
and urged his return with him to the Castilian quarters in Caxamalca, representing it as the command
of the Inca. Ever since the capture of his master,
Challcuchima had remained uncertain what course to
take. The capture of the Inca in this sudden and
mysterious manner by a race of beings who seemed
to have dropped from       the clouds, and     that too in
the very hour of his triumph, had entirely bewil13 ", Hicieron hacer herrage de the Peruvian Conquerors assures us
herraduras 6 clavos para sus Ca- they used gold and silver. (Rela
ballos de Plata, los cuales hicieron tione d'un Capitano Spagnuolo, ap.
los cien Indios fundidores muy Ramusio, Navigationi et Viaggi,
buenos e cuantos quisieron de ellos, Venetia, 1565, tom. III. fol. 376.)
con el cual herrage andubieron dos All agree in the silver.
meses."  (Oviedo, Hist. de las   14," Era mucha la Gente de
Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. aquel Pueblo, i de sus Comarcas,
16.) The author of the Relacion que al parecer de los Espafoles, se
del Primero Descubrimiento, MS., juntaban cada Dia en la Plaza
says they shod the horses with sil- Principal  cien mil Personas."
ver and copper. And another of Estete, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 230




CH. VI.]  THE INCA'S FAVORITE GENERAL.   453
dered the Peruvian chief. He had concerted no
plan for the rescue of Atahuallpa, nor, indeed, did
he know whether any such movement would be acceptable to him. He now acquiesced in his commands, and was willing, at all events, to have a personal interview with his sovereign. Pizarro gained
his end without being obliged to strike a single blow
to effect it. The barbarian, when brought into contact with the white man, would seem to have been
rebuked by his superior genius, in the same manner
as the wild animal of the forest is said to quail be
fore the steady glance of the hunter.
Challcuchima came attended by a numerous retinue. He was borne in his sedan on the shoulders
of his vassals; and, as he accompanied the Spaniards
on their return through the country, received everywhere from the inhabitants the homage paid only to
the favorite of a monarch. Yet all this pomp vanished on his entering the presence of the Inca,
whom he approached with his feet bare, while a
light burden, which he had taken from one of the
attendants, was laid on his back. As he drew near,
the old warrior, raising his hands to heaven, exclaimed,  " Would that I had been here! - this
would not then have happened "; then, kneeling
down, he kissed the hands and feet of his royal
master, and bathed them with his tears. Atahuallpa,
on his part, betrayed not the least emotion, and
showed no other sign of satisfaction at the presence
of his favorite counsellor, than by simply bidding
him welcome. The cold demeanour of the monarch




454            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [Boox III.
contrasted strangely with the loyal sensibility of the
subject.'5
The rank of the Inca placed him at an immeasurable distance above the proudest of his vassals; and
the Spaniards had repeated occasion to admire the
ascendency which, even in his present fallen fortunes, he maintained over his people, and the awe
with which they approached him. Pedro Pizarro
records an interview, at which he was present, between Atahuallpa and one of his great nobles, who
had obtained leave to visit some remote part of the
country on condition of returning by a certain day.
He was detained somewhat beyond the appointed
time, and, on entering the presence with a small
propitiatory gift for his sovereign, his knees shook so
violently, that it seemed, says the chronicler, as if
he would have fallen to the ground. His master,
however, received him kindly, and dismissed him
without a word of rebuke.'6
Atahuallpa in his confinement continued to receive the same respectful treatment from the Spaniards as hitherto. They taught him to play with
dice, and the more intricate game of chess, in which
the royal captive became expert, and loved to beguile with it the tedious hours of his imprisonment.
Towards his own people he maintained as far as
possible his wonted state and ceremonial. He was
15 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y since the Indies were discovered."
Conq., MS.               Ibid., p. 231.
" The like of it," exclaims  16 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
Fstete. " was never before seen Conq., MS.




CH. VI.]  THE INCA'S LIFE IN CONFINEMENT.  455
attended by his wives and the girls of his harem,
who, as was customary, waited on him at table and
discharged the other menial offices about his person. A body of Indian nobles were stationed in the
antechamber, but never entered the presence unbidden; and when they did enter it, they submitted
to the same humiliating ceremonies imposed on the
greatest of his subjects. The service of his table
was gold and silver plate.  His dress, which he
often changed, was composed of the wool of the
vicuna wrought into mantles, so fine that it had the
appearance of silk. He sometimes exchanged these
for a robe made of the skins of bats, as soft and
sleek as velvet. Round his head he wore the llautu,
a woollen turban or shawl of the most delicate texture, wreathed in folds of various bright colors; and
he still continued to encircle his temples with the
borla, the crimson threads of which, mingled with
gold, descended so as partly to conceal his eyes.
The image of royalty had charms for him, when its
substance had departed. No garment or utensil
that had once belonged to the Peruvian sovereign
could ever be used by another. When he laid it
aside, it was carefully deposited in a chest, kept for
the purpose, and afterwards burned. It would have
been sacrilege to apply to vulgar uses that which
had been consecrated by the touch of the Inca.'7
17 This account of the personal narrative is little known, I have
habits of Atahuallpa is taken from extracted the original in Appendix
Pedro Pizarro, who saw him often No. 9.
in his confinement. As his curious




456           CONQUEST OF PERU.      [BooK Ill.
Not long after the arrival of the party from Pachacamac, in the latter part of May, the three
emissaries returned from Cuzco. They had been
very successful in their mission. Owing to the
Inca's order, and the awe which the white men now
inspired throughout the country, the Spaniards had
everywhere met with a kind reception. They had
been carried on the shoulders of the natives in the
hamacas, or sedans, of the country; and, as they had
travelled all the way to the capital on the great imperial road, along which relays of Indian carriers
were established at stated intervals, they performed
this journey of more than six hundred miles, not
only without inconvenience, but with the most luxurious ease. They passed through many populous
towns, and always found the simple natives disposed
to venerate them as beings of a superior nature. In
Cuzco they were received with public festivities,
were sumptuously lodged; and had every want anticipated by the obsequious devotion of the inhabitants.
Their accounts of the capital confirmed all that
Pizarro had before heard of the wealth and population of the city. Though they had remained more
than a week in this place, the emissaries had not
seen the whole of it. The great temple of the Sun
they found literally covered with plates of gold.
They had entered the interior and beheld the royal
mummies, seated each in his gold-embossed chair,
and in robes profusely covered with ornaments.
The Spaniards had the grace to respect these, as
they had been previously enjoined by the Inca; but




CH. VI.]   ENVOYS' CONDUCT IN CUZCO.        457
they required that the plates which garnished the
walls should be all removed. The Peruvians most
reluctantly acquiesced in the commands of their
sovereign to desecrate the national temple, which
every inhabitant of the city regarded with peculiar
pride and veneration. With less reluctance they
assisted the Conquerors in stripping the ornaments
from some of the other edifices, where the gold,
however, being mixed with a large proportion of
alloy, was of much less value.'8
The number of plates they tore from the temple
of the Sun was seven hundred; and though of no
great thickness, probably, they are compared in size
to the lid of a chest, ten or twelve inches wide.'9
A cornice of pure gold encircled the edifice, but
so strongly set in the stone, that it fortunately defied
the efforts of the spoilers. The Spaniards complained of the want of alacrity shown by the
Indians in the work of destruction, and said that
there were other parts of the city containing buildings rich in gold and silver which they had not been
allowed to see. In truth, their mission, which, at
best, was a most ungrateful one, had been rendered
doubly annoying by the manner in which they had
executed it. The emissaries were men of a very
low stamp, and, puffed up by the honors conceded to
18 Rel. d'un Capitano Spagn., esta Casa tenia, quitaron setecienap. Ramusio, tom. IlI. fol. 375. -  tas Planchas..... a manera de
Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., Tablas de Caxas de a tres, i a
MS.- Herrera, Hist. General, quatro palmos de largo." Xerez,
4ec. 5, lib. 2, cap. 12, 13.  Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom.
19,, I de las Chapas de oro, que III. p. 232.
VOL. I.        58




458              CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK III.
them by the natives, they looked on themselves as
entitled to these, and contemned the poor Indians as
a race immeasurably beneath the European. They
not only showed the most disgusting rapacity, but
treated the highest nobles with wanton insolence.
They even went so far, it is said, as to violate the
privacy of the convents, and to outrage the religious
sentiments of the Peruvians by their scandalous
amours with the Virgins of the Sun. The people
of Cuzco were so exasperated, that they would have
laid violent hands on them, but for their habitual
reverence for the Inca, in whose name the Spaniards had come there. As it was, the Indians collected as much gold as was necessary to satisfy their
unworthy visitors, and got rid of them as speedily
as possible.20  It was a great mistake in Pizarro to
send such men. There were persons, even in his
company, who, as other occasions showed, had some
sense of self-respect, if not respect for the natives.
The messengers brought with them, besides silver,
full two hundred cargas or loads of gold.21 This
was an important accession to the contributions of
Atahuallpa; and, although the treasure was still considerably below the mark prescribed, the monarch
20 Herrera, Hist. General, ubi " Cargas de Paligueres, que las
supra.                     traen quatro Indios." The mean21 So says Pizarro's secretary. ing of paligueres - not a Spanish
"I vinieron docientas cargas de word- is doubtful. Ternaux-ComOro, i veinte i cinco de Plata." pans supposes, ingeniously enough,
(Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Bar- that it may have something of the
cia, ubi supra.) A load, he says, same meaning with palanquin, to
was brought by four Indians. which it bears some resemblance




CH. VI.]     ARRIVAL OF ALMAGRO.         459
saw with satisfaction the time drawing nearer foi
the completion of his ransom.
Not long before this, an event had occurred
which changed the condition of the Spaniards, and
had an unfavorable influence on the fortunes of the
Inca. This was the arrival of Almagro at Caxamalca, with a strong reinforcement. That chief
had succeeded, after great efforts, in equipping three
vessels, and assembling a body of one hundred
and fifty men, with which he sailed from Panama, the latter part of the preceding year. On
his voyage, he was joined by a small additional force
from Nicaragua, so that his whole strength amounted to one hundred and fifty foot and fifty horse,
well provided with the munitions of war. His vessels were steered by the old pilot Ruiz; but after
making the Bay of St. Matthew, he crept slowly
along the coast, baffled as usual by winds and currents, and experiencing all the hardships incident to
that protracted navigation. From some cause or
other, he was not so fortunate as to obtain tidings of
Pizarro; and so disheartened were his followers,
most of whom were raw adventurers, that, when arrived at Puerto Viejo, they proposed to abandon the
expedition, and return at once to Panama. Fortunately, one of the little squadron which Almagro had
sent forward to Tumbez brought intelligence of Pizarro and of the colony he had planted at San
Miguel. Cheered by the tidings, the cavalier resumed his voyage, and succeeded, at length, towards
the close of December, 1532, in bringing his whole
party safe to the Spanish settlement.




460            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BooK III.
He there received the account of Pizarro's march
across the mountains, his seizure of the Inca, and,
soon afterwards, of the enormous ransom offered for
his liberation. Almagro and his companions listened
with undisguised amazement to this account of his
associate, and of a change in his fortunes so rapid
and wonderful that it seemed little less than magic.
At the same time, he received a caution from some
of the colonists not to trust himself in the power
of Pizarro, who was known to bear him no goodwill.
Not long after Almagro's arrival at San Miguel,
advices were sent of it to Caxamalca, and a private
note from his secretary Perez informed Pizarro that
his associate had come with no purpose of co6perating with him, but with the intention to establish
an independent government. Both of the Spanish
captains seem to have been surrounded by mean
and turbulent spirits, who sought to embroil them
with each other, trusting, doubtless, to find their
own account in the rupture. For once, however,
their malicious machinations failed.
Pizarro was overjoyed at the arrival of so considerable a reinforcement, which would enable him to
push his fortunes as he had desired, and go forward
with the conquest of the country. He laid little
stress on the secretary's communication, since, whatever might have been Almagro's original purpose,
Pizarro knew that the richness of the vein he had
now opened in the land would be certain to secure
his cooperation in working it. He had the magna



CH. VI.J     ARRIVAL OF ALMAGRO.          461
nimity, therefore, - for there is something magnanimous in being able to stifle the suggestions of a
petty rivalry in obedience to sound policy, - to send
at once to his ancient comrade, and invite him, with
many assurances of friendship, to Caxamalca. Almagro, who was of a frank and careless nature,
received the communication in the spirit in which it
was made, and, after some necessary delay, directed
his march into the interior. But before leaving
San Miguel, having become acquainted with the
treacherous conduct of his secretary, he recom
pensed his treason by hanging him on the spot.22
Almagro reached Caxamalca about the middle
of February, 1533. The soldiers of Pizarro came
out to welcome their countrymen, and the two captains embraced each other with every mark of cordial satisfaction. All past differences were buried
in oblivion, and they seemed only prepared to aid
one another in following up the brilliant career now
opened to them in the conquest of an empire.
There was one person in Caxamalca on whom
this arrival of the Spaniards produced a very different impression from that made on their own
countrymen. This was the Inca Atahuallpa. He
saw in the new-comers only a new swarm of locusts to devour his unhappy country; and he felt,
that, with his enemies thus multiplying around him,
22 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y MS.- Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
Conq., MS.-Xerez, Conq. del -Relacion del Primer. Descub.,
Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. pp. MS. - Herrera, Hist. General,
204, 205.- Relacion Sumaria, dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 1.




462            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK II1.
the chances were diminished of recovering his freedom, or of maintaining it, if recovered.  A little
circumstance, insignificant in itself, but magnified
by superstition into something formidable, occurred
at this time to cast an additional gloom over his
situation.
A remarkable appearance, somewhat of the na
ture of a meteor, or it may have been a comet, was
seen in the heavens by some soldiers and pointed
out to Atahuallpa. He gazed on it with fixed attention for some minutes, and then exclaimed, with
a dejected air, that "a similar sign had been seen in
the skies a short time before the death of his father
Huayna Capac." 23 From this day a sadness seemed
to take possession of him, as he looked with doubt
and undefined dread to the future. -Thus it is,
that, in seasons of danger, the mind, like the senses,
becomes morbidly acute in its perceptions; and the
least departure from the regular course of nature,
that would have passed unheeded in ordinary times,
to the superstitious eye seems pregnant with meaning, as in some way or other connected with the
destiny of the individual.
23 Rel. d'un Capitano Spagn., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 377 -
Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 65.




CHAPTER VII.
IMMENSE AMOUNT OF TREASURE.- ITS DIVISION AMONG THE TROOPS.
-RUMORS OF A RISING.-TRIAL OF THE INCA. -HIS EXECUTION
REFLECTIONS.
1533.
THE arrival of Almagro produced a considerable
change in Pizarro's prospects, since it enabled him
to resume active operations, and push forward his
conquests in the interior.  The only obstacle in
his way was the Inca's ransom, and the Spaniards
had patiently waited, till the return of the emissaries from Cuzco swelled the treasure to a large
amount, though still below the stipulated limit.
But now their avarice got the better of their forbearance, and they called loudly for the immediate
division of the gold. To wait longer would only
be to invite the assault of their enemies, allured by
a bait so attractive. While the treasure remained
uncounted, no man knew its value, nor what was
to be his own portion. It was better to distribute it at once, and let every one possess and defend his own. Several, moreover, were now disposed to return home, and take their share of the
gold with them, where they could place it in safety.
But these were few, while much the larger part




464            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
were only anxious to leave their present quarters,
and march at once to Cuzco.    More gold, they
thought, awaited them in that capital, than they
could get here by prolonging their stay; while every
hour was precious, to prevent the inhabitants from
secreting their treasures, of which design they had
already given indication.
Pizarro was especially moved by the last consideration; and he felt, that, without the capital, he
could not hope to become master of the empire.
Without further delay, the division of the treasure
was agreed upon.
Yet, before making this, it was necessary to reduce the whole to ingots of a uniform standard, for
the spoil was composed of an infinite variety of articles, in which the gold was of very different degrees of purity. These articles consisted of goblets,
ewers, salvers, vases of every shape and size, ornaments and utensils for the temples and the royal
palaces, tiles and plates for the decoration of the
public edifices, curious imitations of different plants
and animals. Among the plants, the most beautiful was the Indian corn, in which the golden ear
was sheathed in its broad leaves of silver, from
which hung a rich tassel of threads of the same
precious metal. A fountain was also much admired, which sent up a sparkling jet of gold, while
birds and animals of the same material played
in the waters at its base.  The delicacy of the
workmanship of some of these, and the beauty
and ingenuity of the design, attracted the admira



Cu. VII.]  IMMENSE AMOUNT OF TREASURE.         465
tion of better judges than the rude Conquerors of
Peru.1
Before breaking up these specimens of Indian art,
it was determined to send a quantity, which should
be deducted from the royal fifth, to the Emperor.
It would serve as a sample of the ingenuity of the
natives, and would show him the value of his conquests. A number of the most beautiful articles
was selected, to the amount of a hundred thousand
ducats, and Hernando Pizarro was appointed to be
the bearer of them to Spain. He was to obtain an
audience of Charles, and, at the same time that he
laid the treasures before him, he was to give an
account of the proceedings of the Conquerors, and
to seek a further augmentation of their powers and
dignities.
No man in the army was better qualified for this
mission, by his address and knowledge of affairs,
than Hernando Pizarro; no one would be so likely
to urge his suit with effect at the haughty Castilian
court.  But other reasons influenced the selection
of him at the present juncture.
His former jealousy of Almagro still rankled in
his bosom, and he had beheld that chief's arrival at
the camp with feelings of disgust, which he did not
I Relatione de Pedro Sancho, was bearing to Castile; and he
ap. Ramusio, Viaggi, tom. III. fol. expatiates on several beautifully
399. -Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. wrought vases, richly chased, of
Barcia, tom. III. p. 233.- Zarate, very fine gold, and measuring
Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, cap. 7.  twelve inches in height and thirty
Oviedo saw at St. Domingo the round. Hist. de las Indias, MS.,
articles which Ferdinand Pizarro Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 16.
VOL. I.         59




466               CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BOOK III
care to conceal. He looked on him as coming to
share the spoils of victory, and defraud his brother
of his legitimate honors.   Instead of exchanging the
cordial greeting proffered by Almagro at their first
interview, the arrogant cavalier held back in sullen
silence. His brother Francis was greatly displeased
at a conduct which threatened to renew their ancient feud, and he induced Hernando to accompany
him to Almagro's quarters, and make some acknowledgment for his uncourteous behaviour.2      But, notwithstanding this show of reconciliation, the general
thought the present a favorable opportunity to remove his brother from the scene of operations,
where his factious spirit more than counterbalanced
his eminent services.0
The business of melting down the plate was intrusted to the Indian goldsmiths, who were thus
required to undo the work of their own hands.
They toiled day and night, but such was the quantity to be recast, that it consumed a full month.
When the whole was reduced to bars of a uniform
standard, they were nicely weighed, under the superintendence of the royal inspectors. The total
amount of the gold was found to be one million,
2 HIerrea, Hist. General, dec. again to Peru. "Trabajaron de
5, lib. 2, cap. 3.          le embiar rico por quitarle de entre
3 According to Oviedo it was ellos, y porque yendo muy rico
agreed that Hernando should have como fue no tubiese voluntad de
a share, much larger than he was tornar a aquellas partes." Hist.
entitled to, of the Inca's ransom, de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8,
in the hope that he would feel so cap. 16.
rich as never to desire to return




CH. VII.]   ITS DIVISION     AMONG THE TROOPS.               467
three hundred and twenty-six thousand, five hundred and thirty-nine pesos de oro, which, allowing
for the greater value of money in the sixteenth century, would be equivalent, probably, at the present
time, to    near three    millions and      a half of pounds
sterling, or somewhat less than fifteen           millions and
a half of dollars.4      The    quantity of silver was esti4 Acta de Reparticion del Res-  &c., of the metal, circumstances
cate de Atahuallpa, MS.- Xe- easily determined.       In the  secrez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, end place, we may inquire into
tom. III. p. 232.                 the  commercial or comparative
In reducing the sums mentioned  worth of the money, - that is, the
in this work, I have availed myself  value founded on a comparison of
— as I before did, in the History  the difference between the amount
of the Conquest of Mexico —of     of commodities which the same
the labors of Sefor Clemencin, sum would purchase formerly, and
formerly Secretary of the Royal at the present time. The last inAcademy of History at Madrid. quiry is attended with great emThis eminent scholar, in the sixth  barrassment, from the difficulty of
volume of the Memoirs of the      finding any one article which may
Academy, prepared wholly by him- be taken as the true standard of
self, has introduced an elaborate  value. Wheat, from its general culessay on the value of the currency  tivation and use, has usually been
in the reign of Ferdinand and Isa- selected by political economists as
bella.  Although this period- the  this standard; and Clemencin has
close of the fifteenth century -  adopted it in his calculations.  Aswas somewhat earlier than that of  suming wheat as the standard, he
the Conquest of Peru, yet his cal- has endeavoured to ascertain the
culations are sufficiently near the  value of the principal coins in cirtruth for our purpose, since the  culation, at the time of the " CathSpanish currency had not as yet olic Kings." iHe makes no menbeen much affected by that dis- tion in his treatise of the peso de
turbing cause,- the influx of the  ore, by which denomination the
precious metals from   the New    sums in the early part of the sixWorld.                            teenth century were more frequentIn inquiries into the currency of ly expressed than by any other.
a remote age, we may consider, in  But he ascertains both the specific
She first place, the specific value of and the commercial value of the
the coin, —that is, the value which  castellano, which several of the old
it derives from the weight, purity, writers, as Oviedo, Herrera. and




468                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                  [BooK Ill.
mated at fifty-one thousand six hundred and ten
marks. History affords no parallel of such a bootyand that, too, in the most convertible form, in ready
money, as it were -       having fallen to the lot of a little
band of military adventurers, like the Conquerors of
Peru. The great object of the Spanish expeditions
in the New World was gold. It is remarkable that
their success should have been so complete. Had
they taken the track of the English, the French, or
the Dutch, on the shores of the northern continent,
how different would have been the result! It is
equally worthy of remark, that the wealth thus
suddenly acquired, by diverting them from the slow
but surer and more permanent sources of national
prosperity, has in the end glided from their grasp,
Xerez, concur in stating as pre- former work, I confined myself to
cisely equivalent to the peso de oro. the commercial value of the money,
From  the results of his calcula- which, being much greater than the
tions, it appears that the specific  specific value, founded on the qualvalue of the castellano, as stated  ity and weight of the metal, was
by him in reals, is equal to three  thought by an ingenious corresponddollars and seven cents of our own  ent to give the reader an exagcurrency, while the commercial gerated estimate of the sums menvalue is nearly four times as great, tioned in the history. But it seems
or eleven dollars sixty-seven cents, to me that it is only this comparaequal to two pounds twelve shillings  tive  or  commercial value with
and sixpence sterling.  By adopting  which the reader has any concern,
this as the approximate value of the indicating what amount of comr
peso de oro, in the early part of the modities any given sum represents,
sixteenth century, the reader may  that he may thus know the real
easily  compute for himself the   worth of that sum; -thus adoptvalue, at that period, of the sums ing the principle, though conversementioned in these pages; most ly stated, of the old Hudibrastic
of which are expressed    in that maxim, —
denomination.                          " What is worth in any thing,
I have been the more particular    But so much money as't will bring "
in this statement, since, in my




CH. VII.] ITS DIVISION AMONG THE TROOPS.  469
and left them among the poorest of the nations of
Christendom.
A new difficulty now arose in respect to the division of the treasure. Almagro's followers claimed
to be admitted to a share of it; which, as they
equalled, and, indeed, somewhat exceeded in number Pizarro's company, would reduce the gains of
these last very materially. " We were not here, it
is true," said Almagro's soldiers to their comrades,
" at the seizure of the Inca, but we have taken our
turn in mounting guard over him since his capture,
have helped you to defend your treasures, and now
give you the means of going forward and securing
your conquests. It is a common cause," they urged,
" in which all are equally embarked, and the gains
should be shared equally between us."
But this way of viewing the matter was not at
all palatable to Pizarro's company, who alleged that
Atahuallpa's contract had been made exclusively
with them; that they had seized the Inca, had
secured the ransom, had incurred, in short, all the
risk of the enterprise, and were not now disposed
to share the fruits of it with every one who came
after them. - There was much force, it could not
be denied, in this reasoning, and it was finally
settled between the leaders, that Almagro's followers should resign their pretensions for a stipulated
sum of no great amount, and look to the career now
opened to them for carving out their fortunes for
themselves.
This delicate affair being thus harmoniously ad



470             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BooK IIt.
justed, Pizarro prepared, with all solemnity, for
a division of the imperial spoil. The troops were
called together in the great square, and the Spanish commander, "with the fear of God before his
eyes," says the record, "invoked the assistance of
Heaven to do the work before him conscientiously
and justly." 5  The appeal may seem somewhat out
of place at the distribution of spoil so unrighteously
acquired; yet, in truth, considering the magnitude
of the treasure, and the power assumed by Pizarro
to distribute it according to the respective deserts
of the individuals, there were few  acts of his life
involving a heavier responsibility. On his present
decision might be said to hang the future fortunes
of each one of his followers,-poverty or independence during the remainder of his days.
The royal fifth was first deducted, including the
remittance already sent to Spain.   The share ap
propriated by Pizarro amounted to fifty-seven thousand two hundred and twenty-two pesos of gold,
and two thousand three hundred and fifty marks
of silver. He had besides this the great chair or
throne of the Inca, of solid gold, and valued at
twenty-five thousand pesos de oro. To his brother
Hernando were paid thirty-one thousand and eighty
pesos of gold, and two thousand three hundred and
fifty marks of silver. De Soto received seventeen
5 " Segun Dios Nuestro Senlor Sefor, 6 imboco el auxilio divino."
le diere a entender teniendo su Acta de Reparticion del Rescate,
conciencia y para lo mejor hazer MS.
pedia el ayuda de Dios Nuestro




Cm. VII.]  ITS DIVISION AMONG THE TROOPS.      /471
thousand seven hundred and forty pesos of gold,
and seven hundred and twenty-four marks of silver.
Most of the remaining cavalry, sixty in number,
received each eight thousand eight hundred and
eighty pesos of gold, and three hundred and sixtytwo marks of silver, though some had more, and a
few considerably less. The infantry mustered in
all one hundred and five men.   Almost one fifth of
them were allowed, each, four thousand four hundred and forty pesos of gold, and one hundred and
eighty marks of silver, half of the compensation of
the troopers. The remainder received one fourth
part less; though here again there were exceptions,
and some were obliged to content themselves with
a much smaller share of the spoil.6
The new    church of San Francisco, the first
Christian temple in Peru, was endowed with two
thousand two hundred and twenty pesos of gold.
The amount assigned to Almagro's company was
not excessive, if it was not more than twenty thousand pesos;7 and that reserved for the colonists of
San Miguel, which amounted only to fifteen thou6 The particulars of the distri- con el Capitan Diego de Almagro
bution are given in the Acta de para ayuda a pagar sus deudas y
Reparticion del Rescate, an instru- fletes y suplir algunas necesidades
ment drawn up and signed by the que traian veinte mil pesos." (Acroyal notary. The document, which ta de Reparticion del Rescate, MS.)
is therefore of unquestionable au- Herrera says that 100,000 pesos
thority, is among the MSS. select- were paid to Almagro's men.
ed for me from the collection of (Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 2, cap.
Munoz.                     3.) But it is not so set down in
7 " Se diese t la gente que vino the instrument.




472              CONQUEST OF PERU.          [BOOK III.
sand pesos, was unaccountably small.8   There were
among them certain soldiers, who at an early period
of the expedition, as the reader may remember,
abandoned the march, and returned to San Miguel
These, certainly, had little claim to be remembered
in the division of booty. But the greater part of
the colony consisted of invalids, men whose health
had been broken by their previous hardships, but
who still, with a stout and willing heart, did good
service in their military post on the sea-coast. On
what grounds they had forfeited their claims to a
more ample remuneration, it is not easy to explain.
Nothing is said, in the partition, of Almagro himself, who, by the terms of the original contract,
might claim an equal share of the spoil with his
associate. As little notice is taken of Luque, the
remaining partner.    Luque himself, was, indeed,
no longer to be benefited by worldly treasure. He
had died a short time before Almagro's departure
from Panama;9 too soon to learn the full success of
the enterprise, which, but for his exertions, must
have failed; too soon to become acquainted with
the achievements and the crimes of Pizarro. But
the Licentiate Espinosa, whom he represented, and
who, it appears, had advanced the funds for the
expedition, was still living at St. Domingo, and
8 I En treinta personas que otros tienen necesidad sefalaba
quedaron en la ciudad de san Mi- 15,000 ps de oro para los repartir
guel de Piura dolientes y otros que S. Senoria entre las dichas persono vinieron ni se hallaron en la nas." Ibid., MS.
prision de Atagualpa y toma del  9 Montesinos, Annales, MS..
oro porque algunos son pobres y ano 1533.




Cu. VII.]  ITS DIVISION AMONG THE TROOPS.             473
Luque's pretensions were explicitly transferred to
him.    Yet it is unsafe to pronounce, at this distance of time, on the authority of mere negative
testimony; and it must be admitted to form a strong
presumption in favor of Pizarro's general equity in
the distribution, that no complaint of it has reached
us from any of the parties present, nor from contemporary chroniclers.10
The division of the ransom being completed by
the Spaniards, there seemed to be no further obstacle to their resuming active operations, and commencing the march to Cuzco. But what was to
be done with Atahuallpa? In the determination of
this question, whatever was expedient was just.1
To liberate him would be to set at large the very
man who might prove their most dangerous enemy;
one whose birth and royal station would rally round
him the whole nation, place all the machinery of
government at his control, and all its resources, -
one, in short, whose bare word might concentrate
all the energies of his people against the Spaniards,
and thus delay for a long period, if not wholly de10 The " Spanish  Captain," III. fol. 378, 379.) The writer,
several times cited, who tells us throughout his Relation, shows a
he was one of the men appointed full measure of the coarse and
to guard the treasure, does indeed  covetous spirit which marked the
complain that a large quantity of adventurers of Peru.
gold vases and other articles re-  11 " Y esto tenia por justo, pues
mained undivided, a palpable in- era provechoso." It is the sentijustice, he thinks, to the honest ment imputed to Pizarro by HerConquerors, who had earned all by rera, Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 3,
their hardships. (Rel. d'un Capi- cap. 4.
tano Spagn., ap. Ramusio, tom.
VOL. I.            60




474           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [Boox III.
feat, the conquest of the country.  Yet to hold
him in captivity was attended with scarcely less
difficulty; since to guard so important a prize would
require such a division of their force as must greatly cripple its strength, and how could they expect,
by any vigilance, to secure their prisoner against
rescue in the perilous passes of the mountains?
The Inca himself now loudly demanded his freedom. The proposed amount of the ransom had,
indeed, not been fully paid. It may be doubted
whether it ever would have been, considering the
embarrassments thrown in the way by the guardians
of the temples, who seemed disposed to secrete the
treasures, rather than despoil these sacred deposito
ries to satisfy the cupidity of the strangers. It was
unlucky, too, for the Indian monarch, that much of
the gold, and that of the best quality, consisted of
flat plates or tiles, which, however valuable, lay in
a compact form that did little towards swelling the
heap. But an immense amount had been already
realized, and it would have been a still greater one,
the Inca might allege, but for the impatience of
the Spaniards. At all events, it was a magnificent
ransom, such as was never paid by prince or potentate before.
These considerations Atahuallpa urged on several
of the cavaliers, and especially on Hernando de Soto,
who was on terms of more familiarity with him than
Pizarro.  De Soto reported Atahuallpals demands
to his leader; but the latter evaded a direct reply.
He did not disclose the dark purposes over which




CH. VII.]          RUMORS OF A RISING.                     475
his mind    was brooding.'2        Not long     afterward    he
caused the notary to prepare an instrument, in which
he fully acquitted the Inca of further obligation in
respect to the ransom. This he commanded to be
publicly proclaimed in the camp, while at the same
time he openly declared that the safety of the Spaniards required, that the Inca should be detained in
confinement until they were strengthened by additional reinforcements.l3
Meanwhile     the old rumors of a meditated          attack
by the natives began to be current among the soldiers.    They    were   repeated    from    one to another,
gaining something by every repetition. An immense army, it was reported, was mustering at
Quito, the     land  of   Atahuallpa's     birth, and    thirty
thousand Caribs were on          their way to     support it.'4
The Caribs were distributed by the early Spaniards
rather indiscriminately over the different parts of
12 cc I como no ahondaban los Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 399.) The
designios que tenia le replicaban; authority is unimpeaclhable,- for
pero el respondia, que iba mirando  any fact, at least, thlat makes
en ello."  Herrera, Hist. General, against the Conqueror:, - since
dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 4.          the Relatione was by one of Pi13 it Fatta quella fusione, il zarro's own secretaries, and was
Governatore fece vn atto innanzi authorized under the hands of the
al notaro nel quale liberaua il Ca- general and his great officers.
cique Atabalipa et l'absolueua della  14," De la Gente Natural de
promessa et parola che haueua    Quito vienen docientos mil Horndata a gli Spagnuoli che lo presero  bres de Guerra, i treinta mil Cadella casa d'oro c'haueua lor co- ribes, que comen Came Humana."
cessa, il quale fece publicar publi- Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia,
camete a suon di trombe nella tom. III. p. 233.- See also Pedro
piazza di quella citta di Caxamal- Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio, ubi
ca."  (Pedro Sancho, Rel., ap. supra.




476                CONQUEST OF PERU.              [BooK III.
America, being invested with peculiar horrors as a
race of cannibals.
It was not easy to trace the origin of these rumors. There was in the camp a considerable number of Indians, who belonged to the party of Huascar, and who were, of course, hostile to Atahuallpa.
But his worst enemy was Felipillo, the interpreter
from Tumbez, already mentioned in these pages.
This youth had conceived a passion, or, as some say,
had been detected in an intrigue with, one of the
royal concubines.'5 The circumstance had reached
the ears of Atahuallpa, who felt himself deeply outraged by it. " That such an insult should have
been offered by so base a person was an indignity,"
he said, " more difficult to bear than his imprisonment; 16 and he told Pizarro, "that, by the Peruvian law, it could be expiated, not by the criminal's
own death alone, but by that of his whole family and
kindred." 17 But Felipillo was too important to the
Spaniards to be dealt with so summarily; nor did
they probably attach such consequence to an offence
which, if report be true, they had countenanced
15," Pues estando asi atravesose authority, (see Espafioles Celebres,
un demonio de una lengua que se tor. II. p. 210, nota,) are stated
dezia ffelipillo uno de los mucha- very explicitly by Zarate, Naharro,
chos quc el marquez avia llevado a Gomara, Balboa, all contemporaEspana que al presente hera lengua neous, though not, like Pedro Piy andava enamorado de una muger zarro, personally present in the
de Atabalipa."  Pedro Pizarro, army.
Descub. y Conq., MS.            16 " Diciendo que sentia mas aquel
The amour and the malice of desacato, que su prision." ZaFelipillo, which, Quintana seems rate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, cap. 7.
to think, rest chiefly on Garcilasso's  17 Ibid., loc. cit.




CH. VII.]      RUMORS OF A RISING.          477
by their own example.'8 Felipillo, however, soon
learned the state of the Inca's feelings towards
himself, and from that moment he regarded him
with deadly hatred. Unfortunately, his malignant
temper found ready means for its indulgence.
The rumors of a rising among the natives pointed
to Atahuallpa as the author of it. Challcuchima
was examined on the subject, but avowed his entire
ignorance of any such design, which he pronounced
a malicious slander. Pizarro next laid the matter
before the Inca himself, repeating to him the stories
in circulation, with the air of one who believed
them. " What treason is this," said the general,
" that you have meditated against me, - me, who
have ever treated you with honor, confiding in your
words, as in those of a brother?"  "You jest," replied the Inca, who, perhaps, did not feel the weight
of this confidence; " you are always jesting with
me. How could I or my people think of conspiring
against men so valiant as the Spaniards? Do not
jest with me thus, I beseech you." 19  This," continues Pizarro's secretary, "he said in the most
composed and natural manner, smiling all the while
to dissemble his falsehood, so that we were all
amazed to find such cunning in a barbarian." 20
18 c" E le habian tornado sus me hablas cosas de burlas? Que
mugeres e repartidolas en su pre- parte somos Yo, i toda mi Gente,
sencia 6 usaban de ellas de sus para enojar a tan valientes Homadulterios." Oviedo, Hist. de las bres como vosotros? Nome digas
Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. esas burlas." Xerez, Conq. del
22.                      Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 234.
19 C" Burlaste conmigo? siempre  20 " De que los Espaioles que




478            CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BooK III.
But it was not with cunning, but with the con
sciousness of innocence, as the event afterwards
proved, that Atahuallpa thus spoke to Pizarro. He
readily discerned, however, the causes, perhaps the
consequences, of the accusation. He saw a dark gulf
opening beneath his feet; and he was surrounded by
strangers, on none of whom he could lean for counsel or protection. The life of the captive monarch
is usually short; and Atahuallpa might have learned
the truth of this, when he thought of Huascar.
Bitterly did he now lament the absence of Hernando Pizarro, for, strange as it may seem, the haughty spirit of this cavalier had been touched by the
condition of the royal prisoner, and he had treated
him with a deference which won for him the peculiar regard and confidence of the Indian. Yet the
latter lost no time in endeavouring to efface the general's suspicions, and to establish his own innocence.
"' Am I not," said he to Pizarro, "a poor captive in
your hands?  How could I harbour the designs you
impute to me, when I should be the first victim of
the outbreak?  And you little know my people, if
you think that such a movement would be made
without my orders; when the very birds in my
dominions,' said he, with somewhat of an hyperbole, "would scarcely venture to fly contrary to
my will. 21
se las han oido, estan espantados ni las Aves bolaran en mi Tierra."
de ver en vn Hombre Barbaro Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2,
tanta prudencia."'  Ibid., loc. cit.  cap. 7.
l2 " Pues si Yo no lo quiero,




CI. VII.]     RUMORS OF A RISING.         479
But these protestations of innocence had little
effect on the troops; among whom the story of a
general rising of the natives continued to gain credit
every hour. A large force, it was said, was already
gathered at Guamachucho, not a hundred miles from
the camp, and their assault might be hourly expected. The treasure which the Spaniards had
acquired afforded a tempting prize, and their own
alarm was increased by the apprehension of losing it.
The patroles were doubled. The horses were kept
saddled and bridled. The soldiers slept on their
arms; Pizarro went the rounds regularly to see that
every sentinel was on his post. The little army,
in short, was in a state of preparation for instant
attack.
Men suffering from fear are not likely to be too
scrupulous as to the means of removing the cause
of it. Murmurs, mingled with gloomy menaces,
were now heard against the Inca, the author of
these machinations. Many began to demand his
life as necessary to the safety of the army. Among
these, the most vehement were Almagro and his
followers. They had not witnessed the seizure of
Atahuallpa. They had no sympathy with him in his
fallen state. They regarded him only as an incumbrance, and their desire now was to push their for
tunes in the country, since they had got so little of
the gold of Caxamalca. They were supported by
Riquelme, the treasurer, and by the rest of the royal
officers. These men had been left at San Miguel
by Pizarro, who did not care to have such official




480             CONQUEST OF PERU.           [BOOK III.
spies on his movements.     But they had come to
the camp with Almagro, and they loudly demanded the Inca's death, as indispensable to the tranquillity of the country, and the interests of the
Crown.22
To these dark suggestions Pizarro turned —or
seemed to turn - an unwilling ear, showing visible
reluctance to proceed to extreme measures with
his prisoner.23 There were some few, and among
others Hernando de Soto, who supported him in
these views, and who regarded such measures as
not at all justified by the evidence of Atahuallpa's
guilt. In this state of things, the Spanish commander determined to send a small detachment to
Guamachucho, to reconnoitre the country and ascertain what ground there was for the rumors of an
insurrection. De Soto was placed at the head of
the expedition, which, as the distance was not great,
would occupy but a few days.
After that cavalier's departure, the agitation
among the soldiers, instead of diminishing, increased to such a degree, that Pizarro, unable to resist
their importunities, consented to bring Atahuallpa
to instant trial.  It was but decent, and certainly
safer, to have the forms of a trial. A court was
22 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y  23 " Aunque contra voluntad del
Conq., MS.- Relacion del Primer. dicho Gobernador, que nunca estuDescub., MS.- Ped. Sancho, bo bien en ello." Relacion del
Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. IIl. fol. Primer. Descub., MS. —So also
400.                       Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq.,
These cavaliers were all present MS. - Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap.
in the camp.              Ramusio, ubi supra.




CHI. VII.]         TRIAL OF THE INCA.                    481
organized, over which the two captains, Pizarro and
Almagro, were to preside as judges.           An attorneygeneral was named to prosecute for the Crown, and
counsel was assigned to the prisoner.
The charges preferred against the Inca, drawn
up in the form of interrogatories, were twelve in
number. The most important were, that he had
usurped the crown and assassinated his brother Huascar; that he had squandered the public revenues
since the conquest of the country by the Spaniards,
and lavished them on his kindred and his minions;
that he was guilty of idolatry, and of adulterous
practices, indulging openly in a plurality of wives;
finally, that he had attempted to excite an insurrection against the Spaniards.4
These charges, most of which had reference to
national usages, or to the personal relations of the
Inca, over which the Spanish conquerors had clearly
no jurisdiction, are so absurd, that they might well
24 The   specification  of the  contemporary writers, by Gomara,
charges against the Inca is given  Oviedo, and Pedro Sancho. Ovieby Garcilasso de la Vega. (Cor. do characterizes it as "a badly
Real., Parte 2, lib. 1, cap. 37.) contrived and worse written docuOne could have wished to find ment, devised by a factious and
them  specified by some of the unprincipled priest, a clumsy noactors in the tragedy. But Gar- tary without conscience, and others
cilasso had access to the best of the like stamp, who were all
sources of information, and where  concerned in this villany."  (Hist.
there was no motive for falsehood, de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8,
as in the present instance, his word cap. 22.) Most authorities agree
may probably be taken. - The fact in the two principal charges, —
of a process being formally insti- the assassination of Huascar, and
tuted against the Indian monarch  the conspiracy against the Spanis explicitly recognized by several iards.
VOL. 1.             61




482               CONQUEST OF PERU.             [BOOK 111
provoke a smile, did they not excite a deeper feeling. The last of the charges was the only one of
moment in such a trial; and the weakness of this
may be inferred from the care taken to bolster it up,
with the others. The mere specification of the articles must have been sufficient to show       that the
doom of the Inca was already sealed.
A  number of Indian witnesses were examined,
and their testimony, filtrated through the interpretation of Felipillo, received, it is said, when necessary,
a very different coloring from that of the original.
The examination was soon ended, and " a warm
discussion," as we are assured by one of Pizarro's
own secretaries, " took place in respect to the probable good or evil that would result from the death
of Atahuallpa."2     It was a question of expediency.
He was found guilty, - whether of all the crimes
alleged we are not informed, -and he was sentenced to be burnt alive in the great square of
Caxamalca.     The sentence was to be carried into
execution that very night.      They were not even to
wait for the return of De Soto, when the information he would bring would go far to establish the
25,, Doppo l'essersi molto dis- of Pizarro himself. According to
putato, et ragionato del danno et him, the conclave, which agitated
vtile che saria potato auuenire per this " question of expediency,"
il viuere o morire di Atabalipa, fu consisted of the " officers of the
risoluto che si facesse giustitia di Crown and those of the army, a
lui." (Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. certain doctor learned in the law,
Ramusio, tom. II. fol. 400.) It that chanced to be with them, and
is the language of a writer who the reverend Father Vicente de
may be taken as the mouthpiece Valverde."




CH. VII.]     TRIAL OF THE INCA.           483
truth or the falsehood of the reports respecting the
insurrection of the natives. It was desirable to obtain the countenance of Father Valverde to these
proceedings, and a copy of the judgment was submitted to the friar for his signature, which he gave
without hesitation, declaring, that, " in his opinion,
the Inca, at all events, deserved death." 26
Yet there were some few in that martial conclave
who resisted these high-handed measures. They
considered them as a poor requital of all the favors
bestowed on them by the Inca, who hitherto had
received at their hands nothing but wrong. They
objected to the evidence as wholly insufficient; and
they denied the authority of such a tribunal to sit in
judgment on a sovereign prince in the heart of his
own dominions. If he were to be tried, he should
be sent to Spain, and his cause brought before the
Emperor, who alone had power to determine it.
But the great majority-and they were ten to
one -overruled these objections, by declaring there
was no doubt of Atahuallpa's guilt, and they were
willing to assume the responsibility of his punishment. A full account of the proceedings would be
sent to Castile, and the Emperor should be informed
who were the loyal servants of the Crown, and
who were its enemies. The dispute ran so high,
that for a time it menaced an open and violent
rupture; till, at length, convinced that resistance
26 " Respondi6, que firmaria, aun en lo exterior quisieron justique era bastante, para que el Inga ficar su intento." Herrera, Hist.
fuese condenado a muerte, porque General, dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 4




484               CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BooK III
was fruitless, the weaker party, silenced, but not
satisfied, contented themselves with entering a written protest against these proceedings, which would
leave an indelible stain on the names of all concerned in them.27
When the sentence was communicated to the
Inca, he was greatly overcome by it.       He had, indeed, for some time, looked to such an issue as
probable, and had been heard to intimate as much
to those about him.    But the probability of such an
event is very different from its certainty,-and that,
too, so sudden and speedy. For a moment, the
overwhelming conviction of it unmanned him, and
he  exclaimed, with     tears in  his eyes,-    "What
have I done, or my children, that I should meet such
a fate? And from your hands, too," said he, addressing Pizarro; "you, who have met with friendship and kindness from my people, with whom I
have shared my treasures, who have received nothing  but benefits from    my hands!"       In the most
piteous tones, he then implored that his life might
be spared, promising any guaranty that might be
required for the safety of every Spaniard in the ar27 Garcilasso has preserved the like the Inca of Peru; but not so
names of some of those who so correct in supposing that their
courageously, though ineffectually, master, the Emperor, had a better
resisted the popular cry for the right. Vattel (Book II. ch. 4.)
Inca's blood. (Corn. Real., Parte especially animadverts on this pre-', lib. 1, cap. 37.) They were tended trial of Atahuallpa, as a
doubtless correct in denying the manifest outrage on the law of
right of such a tribunal to sit in nations.
judgment on an independent prince,




CH. VII.]        HIS EXECUTION.               485
my, —promising double the ransom he had already
paid, if time were only given him to obtain it.28
An eyewitness assures us that Pizarro was visibly affected, as he turned away from the Inca, to
whose appeal he had no power to listen, in opposition to the voice of the army, and to his own sense
of what was due to the security of the country.29
Atahuallpa, finding he had no power to turn his
Conqueror from his purpose, recovered his habitual
self-possession, and from that moment submitted
himself to his fate with the courage of an Indian
warrior.
T'he doom of the Inca was proclaimed by sound
of trumqet in the great square of Caxamalca; and,
two hours after sunset, the Spanish soldiery assembled by torch-light in the plaza to witness the execution of the sentence. It was on the twenty-ninth
of August, 1533.   Atafiualpa'was'led out'chained
hand and foot, - for he had been kept in irons ever
since the great excitement had prevailed in the
army respecting an assault. Father Vicente de
Valverde was at his side, striving to administer consolation, and, if possible, to persuade him at this last
hour to abjure his superstition and embrace the religion of his Conquerors. He was willing to save
the soul of his victim from the terrible expiation in
28 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y "Yo vide lloraral marques de pesar
Conq., MS. -Herrera, Hist. Ge- por no podelle dar la ida porque
neral, dec. 5, lib. 3, cap. 4. - Za- cierto temio los requirimientos y el
rate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 2, cap. 7. rriezgo que avia en la tierra si se
29 "I myself," says Pedro Pi- soltava." Descub. y Conq., MS
zarro, " saw the general weep."




486               CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BOOK III
the next world, to which he had so cheerfully consigned his mortal part in this.
During Atahuallpa's confinement, the friar had repeatedly expounded to him the Christian doctrines,
and the Indian monarch discovered much acuteness
in apprehending the discourse of his teacher. But
it had not carried conviction to his mind, and
though he listened with patience, he had shown no
disposition to renounce the faith of his fathers.
The Dominican made a last appeal to him in this
solemn hour; and, when Atahuallpa was bound to
the stake, with the fagots that were to kindle his
funeral pile lying around him, Valverde, holding up
the cross, besought him to embrace it and be baptized, promising that, by so doing, the painful death
to which he had been sentenced should be commuted for the milder form of the garrote, -a mode
of punishment by strangulation, used for criminals
in Spain.30
The unhappy monarch asked if this were really
so, and, on its being confirmed by Pizarro, he consented to abjure his own religion, and receive baptism. The ceremony was performed by Father
30 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. tached. By twisting this stick,
Barcia, tom. III. p. 234.- Pedro the noose is tightened and suffocaPizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS. -  tion is produced. This was the
Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.-Ped. mode, probably, of Atahuallpa's
Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. execution. In Spain, instead of
[II. fol. 400.              the cord, an iron collar is substiThe garrote is a mode of execu- tuted, which, by means of a screw,
tion by means of a noose drawn is compressed round the throat of
round the criminal's neck, to the the sufferer.
back part of which a stick is at



CH. VII.]           HIS EXECUTION.                  487
Valverde, and the new convert received the name
of Juan de Atahuallpa, - the name of Juan being
conferred in honor of John the Baptist, on whose
day the event took place.3'
Atahuallpa expressed a desire that his remains
might be transported to Quito, the place of his birth,
to be preserved with those of his maternal ancestors. Then turning to Pizarro, as a last request, he
implored him to take compassion on his young children, and receive them under his protection. Was
there no other one in that dark company who stood
grimly around him, to whom he could look for the
protection of his offspring? Perhaps he thought
there was no other so competent to afford it, and
that the wishes so solemnly expressed in that hour
might meet with respect even from his Conqueror.
Then, recovering his stoical bearing, which for a
moment had      been  shaken, he submitted himself
calmly to his fate, - while the Spaniards, gathering
around, muttered their credos for the salvation of his
soul!32   Thus by     the death of a vile malefactor
perished the last of the Incas!
31 Velasco, Hist. de Quito,  Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Bartom. I. p. 372.              cia, tom. III. p. 234.- Pedro Pi32 "Ma quando se lovidde appres- zarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.sare per douer esser morto, disse Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, MS.
che raccomandaua ar Gouernatore - Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.i suoi piccioli figliuoli che volesse Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS
tenersegli appresso, & con queste - Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. "',
vltime parole, & dicendo per l'ani- cap. 7.
ma sua li Spagnuoli che erano  The death of Atahuallpa has
all' intorno il Credo, fu subito affo- many points of resemblance with
gato." Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. that of Caupolican, the great ArauRamusio, tom. III. fol. 399.  canian chief, as described in the




488                 CONQUEST OF PERU.                 [BooK III.
1 have already spoken of the person and the qualities of Atahuallpa. He had a handsome counte
nance, though       with   an   expression    somewhat too
fierce to be pleasing. His frame was muscular and
well-proportioned; his air commanding; and his deportment in the Spanish quarters had a degree of
refinement, the more interesting that it was touched
with melancholy. He is accused of having been
cruel in his wars, and bloody in his revenge.33 It
may be true, but the pencil of an enemy would be
likely to overcharge the shadows of the portrait.
He is allowed to have been          bold, high-minded, and
liberal.34 All agree that he showed singular penetration  and   quickness of perception.          His   exploits
historical epic of Ercilla. Both  of razing a whole town to the
embraced the religion of their con- ground for the most trifling offence,
querors at the stake, though Cau- and massacring a thousand persons
polican was so far less fortunate for the fault of one!"  (Conq. del
than the Peruvian monarch, that Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 234.)
his conversion did not save him  Xerez was the private secretary of
from the tortures of a most agoniz- Pizarro. Sancho, who, on the deing death. He was impaled and    parture of Xerez for Spain, sueshot with arrows. The spirited   ceeded him in the same office, pays
verses reflect so faithfully the char- a more decent tribute to the memacter of these early adventurers, in  ory of the Inca, who, he trusts,
which the fanaticism of the Cru- "is received into glory, since he
sader was mingled with the cruelty  died penitent for his sins, and in
of the conqueror, and they are so the true faith of a Christian."
germane to the present subject, Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio,
that I would willingly quote the tom. III. fol.*399.
assage were it not too long. See  34 "El hera muy regalado, y
La Araucana, Parte 2, canto 24.  muy Senor," says Pedro Pizarro.
33 "Thus he paid the penalty   (Descub. y Conq., MS.)   "Mui
of his errors and cruelties," says dispuesto, sabio, animoso, franco,"
Xerez, " for he was the greatest says Gomara. (Hist. de las Ind.,
butcher, as all agree, that the  cap. 118.)
world ever saw; making nothing




Cu. VII.1        HIS EXECUTION.            489
as a warrior had placed his valor beyond dispute.
The best homage to it is the reluctance shown by
the Spaniards to restore him to freedom. They
dreaded him as an enemy, and they had done him
too many wrongs to think that he could be their
friend. Yet his conduct towards them from the
first had been most friendly; and they repaid it
with imprisonment, robbery, and death.
The body of the Inca remained on the place of
execution through the night. The following morning it was removed to the church of San Francisco,
where his funeral obsequies were performed with
great solemnity. Pizarro and the principal cavaliers
went into mourning, and the troops listened with
devout attention to the service of the dead from
the lips of Father Valverde.35 The ceremony was
interrupted by the sound of loud cries and wailing,
as of many voices at the doors of the church. These
were suddenly thrown open, and a number of Indian
women, the wives and sisters of the deceased, rushing up the great aisle, surrounded the corpse. This
was not the way, they cried, to celebrate the funeral rites of an Inca; and they declared their intention to sacrifice themselves on his tomb, and bear
him company to the land of spirits. The audience,
outraged by this frantic behaviour, told the intruders
that Atahuallpa had died in the faith of a Christian,
35 The secretary Sancho seems huallpa for any wrongs he may
to think that the Peruvians must have sustained, since they at once
have regarded these funeral honors raised him to a level with the
as an ample compensation to Ata- Spaniards! Ibid., loc. cit.
VOL. I.        62




490                  CONQUEST OF PERU.                [Boox III.
and that the God of the Christians abhorred such
sacrifices. They then caused the women to be excluded from the church, and several, retiring to
their own quarters, laid violent hands on themselves,
in the vain hope of accompanying their beloved
lord to the bright mansions of the Sun.3
Atahuallpa's remains, notwithstanding his request,
were laid in    the cemetery of San Francisco.37           But
from thence, as is reported, after the Spaniards left
Caxamalca, they were secretly removed, and carried,
as he had desired, to Quito. The colonists of a
later time supposed that some treasures might have
been buried with the body. But, on excavating the
ground, neither treasure nor remains were to be
discovered.38
A day or two after these tragic events, Hernando de Soto returned from his excursion. Great was
his astonishment and indignation at learning what
36 Relacion del Primer. Descub., the chapel belonging to the comMS.                              mon gaol, which was formerly part
See Appendix, No. 10, where    of the palace, the altar stands on
I have cited in the original sev- the stone on which Atahuallpa was
eral of the contemporary notices placed by the Spaniards and stranof Atahuallpa's execution, which  gled, and under which he was
being in manuscript are not very  buried."  (Residence  in  South
accessible, even to Spaniards.   America, vol. II. p. 163.)  Mon37 " Oi dicen los indios que esta tesinos, who wrote more than a
su sepulcro junto a una Cruz de century after the Conquest, tells us
Piedra Blanca que esta en el Ce- that " spots of blood were still
menterio del Convento de Sn Fran- visible on a broad flagstone, in the
cisco." Montesinos,Annales,MS., prison of Caxamalca, on which
aflo 1533.                       Atahuallpa was beheaded."  (An38 Oviedo, Hist. de las Indias, nales, MS., afio 1533.)- IgnoMS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 22.   rance and credulity could scarcely
According to Stevenson, "In   go farther.




CH. VII.]           HIS EXECUTION.                  491
had been done in his absence. He sought out
Pizarro at once, and found him, says the chronicler,
" with a great felt hat, by way of mourning, slouched over his eyes," and in his dress and demeanour
exhibiting all the show     of sorrow.39   "You have
acted rashly," said De Soto to him     bluntly; "Atahuallpa has been basely slandered. There was no
enemy at Guamachucho; no rising among the natives. I have met with nothing on the road but
demonstrations of good-will, and all is quiet. If it
was necessary to bring the Inca to trial, he should
have been taken to Castile and judged by the Emperor. I would have pledged myself to see him
safe on board the vessel."40    Pizarro confessed that
he had been precipitate, and said that he had been
deceived by Riquelme, Valverde, and the others.
These charges soon reached the ears of the treasurer and    the Dominican, who, in their turn, exculpated themselves, and upbraided Pizarro to        his
face, as the   only   one responsible    for the deed.
The dispute ran high; and the parties were heard
by the by-standers to give one another the lie!41
39 "Hallaronle monstrando mu- of his narrative, but in one of those
cho sentimiento con un gran som- supplementary chapters, which he
brero de fieltro puesto en la cabeza makes the vehicle of the most mispor luto e muy calado sobre los cellaneous, yet oftentimes imporojos." Oviedo, Hist. de las In- tant gossip, respecting the great
dias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8, cap. 22. transactions of his history. As he
40 Ibid., MS., ubi supra. -Pe- knew familiarly the leaders in these
dro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS. transactions, the testimony which
- See Appendix, No. 10.      he collected, somewhat at ran41 This remarkable account is dom, is of high authority. The
given by Oviedo, not in the body reader will find Oviedo's account




492           CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
This vulgar squabble among the leaders, so soon
after the event, is the best commentary on the iniquity of their own proceedings and the innocence
of the Inca.
The treatment of Atahuallpa, from first to last,
forms undoubtedly one of the darkest chapters in
Spanish colonial history.  There may have been
massacres perpetrated on a more extended scale,
and executions accompanied with a greater refinement of cruelty. But the blood-stained annals of
the Conquest afford no such example of cold-hearted and systematic persecution, not of an enemy,
but of one whose whole deportment had been that
of a friend and a benefactor.
From the hour that Pizarro and his followers had
entered within the sphere of Atahuallpa's influence,
the hand of friendship had been extended to them
by the natives.  Their first act, on crossing the
mountains, was to kidnap the monarch and massacre his people. The seizure of his person might
be vindicated, by those who considered the end as
justifying the means, on the ground that it was indispensable to secure the triumphs of the Cross.
But no such apology can be urged for the massacre of the unarmed and helpless population, —as
wanton as it was wicked.
The long confinement of the Inca had been used
by the Conquerors to wring from him his treasures
with the hard gripe of avarice. During the whole
of the Inca's death extracted, in tices of this catastrophe, in Apthe original, among the other no- pendix, No. 10




CH. VII.]          REFLECTIONS.                493
of this dismal period, he had conducted himself
with singular generosity and good faith. He had
opened a free passage to the Spaniards through
every part of his empire; and had furnished every
facility for the execution of their plans.   When
these were accomplished, and he remained an encumbrance on their hands, notwithstanding their engagement, expressed or implied, to release him, —
and Pizarro, as we have seen, by a formal act,
acquitted his captive of any further obligation on
the score of the ransom, -he was arraigned before
a mock tribunal, and, under pretences equally false
and frivolous, was condemned to an excruciating
death. From first to last, the policy of the Spanish
conquerors towards their unhappy victim is stamped
with barbarity and fraud.
It is not easy to acquit Pizarro of being in a
great degree responsible for this policy. His partisans have labored to show, that it was forced on
him by the necessity of the case, and that in the
death of the Inca, especially, he yielded reluctantly
to the importunities of others.4    But weak as is
this apology, the historian who has the means of
comparing the various testimony of the period will
come to a different conclusion.    To him    it will
42 " Contra su voluntad senten- ap. Ramusio, tom. II. fol. 399.)
cio a muerte a Atabalipa." (Pe- Even Oviedo seems willing to addro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., mit it possible that Pizarro may
MS.) "Contra voluntad del dicho have been somewhat deceived by
Gobernador." (Relacion del Pri- others. " Que tambien se puede
mer. Descub., MS.) "Ancora creer que era engalfado." Hist.
che molto li dispiacesse di venir a de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8,
questo atto." (Ped. Sancho, Rel., cap. 22.




494            CONQUEST OF PERU.       [BOOK III.
appear, that Pizarro had probably long felt the removal of Atahuallpa as essential to the success of
his enterprise. He foresaw the odium that would
be incurred by the death of his royal captive without sufficient grounds; while he labored to establish
these, he still shrunk from the responsibility of the
deed, and preferred to perpetrate it in obedience to
the suggestions of others, rather than his own.
Like many an unprincipled politician, he wished
to reap the benefit of a bad act, and let others take
the blame of it.
Almagro and his followers are reported by Pizarro's secretaries to have first insisted on the Inca's
death. They were loudly supported by the treasurer and the royal officers, who considered it as
indispensable to the interests of the Crown; and,
finally, the rumors of a conspiracy raised the same
cry among the soldiers, and Pizarro, with all his
tenderness for his prisoner, could not refuse to
bring him to trial. —The form of a trial was necessary to give an appearance of fairness to the proceedings. That it was only form is evident from
the indecent haste with which it was conducted,the examination of evidence, the sentence, and the
execution, being all on the same day. The multiplication of the charges, designed to place the guilt
of the accused on the strongest ground, had, from
their very number, the opposite effect, proving only
the determination to convict him. If Pizarro had
felt the reluctance to his conviction which he pretended, why did he send De Soto, Atahuallpa's best




CH. VII.]        REFLECTIONS.             495
friend, away, when the inquiry was to be instituted?
Why was the sentence so summarily executed, as
not to afford opportunity, by that cavalier's return,
of disproving the truth of the principal charge, -
the only one, in fact, with which the Spaniards
had any concern?  The solemn farce of mourning
and deep sorrow affected by Pizarro, who by these
honors to the dead would intimate the sincere regard he had entertained for the living, was too thin
a veil to impose on the most credulous.
It is not intended by these reflections to exculpate the rest of the army, and especially its officers,
from their share in the infamy of the transaction.
But Pizarro, as commander of the army, was mainly
responsible for its measures. For he was not a man
to allow his own authority to be wrested from his
grasp, or to yield timidly to the impulses of others.
He did not even yield to, his own. His whole
career shows him, whether for good or for evil, to
have acted with a cool and calculating policy.
A story has been often repeated, which refers the
motives of Pizarro's conduct, in some degree at
least, to personal resentment.  The Inca had requested one of the Spanish soldiers to write the
name of God on his nail. This the monarch showed to several of his guards successively, and, as they
read it, and each pronounced the same word, the
sagacious mind of the barbarian was delighted with
what seemed to him little short of a miracle, - to
which the science of his own nation afforded no
analogy. On showing the writing to Pizarro, that




496                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [BOOK III.
chief remained      silent;  and   the   Inca, finding   he
could not read, conceived a contempt for the commander who was even less informed than his soldiers. This he did not wholly conceal, and Pizarro, aware    of the cause of it, neither forgot nor
forgave it.43   The anecdote is reported not on the
highest authority.     It may be true; but it is unnecessary to look for the motives of Pizarro's conduct in personal pique, when so many proofs are to
be discerned of a dark and deliberate policy.
Yet the arts of the Spanish chieftain failed to
reconcile his countrymen to the atrocity of his proceedings.    It is singular to observe      the  difference
between the tone assumed by the first chroniclers
of the transaction, while it was yet fresh, and that
of those who wrote when the lapse of a few years
had shown the tendency of public opinion. The
first boldly avow the deed as demanded by expediency, if not necessity; while they deal in no
measured terms of reproach with the character of
their unfortunate victim.44 The latter, on the other
43 The story is to be found in he had received from the governor
Garcilasso de la Vega, (Cor. and every one of us with the same
Real., Parte 2, cap. 38,) and in no coin with which he usually paid
other writer of the period, so far as his own followers, without any
I am aware.                    fault on their part, -by putting
44 I have already noticed the them to death."  (Ped. Sancho,
lavish epithets heaped by Xerez on  Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol.
the Inca's cruelty. This account 399.) "He deserved to die," says
was printed in Spain, in 1534, the the old Spanish Conqueror before
year after the execution. " The quoted, " and all the country was
proud tyrant," says the other sec- rejoiced that he was put out of the
retary, Sancho, " would have repaid way." Rel. d'un Capitano Spagn.,
the kindness and good treatment ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 377




CH. VII.]                REFLECTIONS.                         497
hand, while they extenuate the errors of the Inca,
and do justice to his good faith, are unreserved in
their condemnation of the Conquerors, on whose
conduct, they say, Heaven set the seal of its own
reprobation, by bringing them all to an untimely
and   miserable     end.45    The    sentence     of contemporaries has been fully      ratified   by that of posterity;46
and the persecution of Atahuallpa is regarded with
justice as having left a stain, never to be effaced,
on the Spanish arms in the New World.
45 "( Las  demostraciones que   enough to excuse the excesses of
despues se vieron bien manifiestan  his countrymen, is unqualified in
lo mui injusta que fu6,.... puesto  his condemnation of this whole
que todos quantos entendieron en   proceeding, (see Appendix, No.
ella tuvicron despues mui desastra-  10,) which, says another contemdas muertes."   (Naharro, Rela- porary, "fills every one with pity
cion Sumaria, MS.) Gomara uses     who has a spark of humanity in
nearly the same language.   " No   his bosom."   Conq. i Pob. del
ai que reprehender' los que le   Piru, MS.
mataron, pues cl tiempo, i sus       46 The most eminent example
pecados los castigaron despues; ca  of this is given by Quintana in his
todos ellos acabaron mal."  (Hist. memoir of Pizarro, (Espaioles
de las Ind., cap. 118.)  According  Celebres, tom. II.,) throughout
to the former writer, Fclipillo paid  which the writer, rising above the
the forfeit of his crimes sometime  mists of national prejudice, which
afterwards, - being   hanged  by  too often blind the eyes of his
Almagro on the expedition to Chili, countrymen, holds the scale of
- when, as " some say, he con- historic criticism with an impartial
fessed having perverted testimony  hand, and deals a full measure of
given in favor of Atahuallpa's in- reprobation to the actors in these
nocence, directly against that mon- dismal scenes.
arch.'   Oviedo,  usually  ready
VOL. I.              63




CHAPTER VIII.
DISORDERS IN PERU. -MARCH TO CUZCO. - ENCOUNTER WITH THE
NATIVES.   CHALLCUCHIMA BURNT.- ARRIVAL IN CUZCO.- DESCRIPTION OF THE CITY.-TREASURE FOUND THERE.
1533 -1534.
THE Inca of Peru was its sovereign in a peculiar sense. He received an obedience from his
vassals more implicit than that of any despot; for
his authority reached to the most secret conduct, -
to the thoughts of the individual. He was reverenced   as more than     human.'     He was not merely
the head of the state, but the point to which all its
institutions converged, as to a common centre,-the
keystone of the political fabric, which must fall to
pieces by its own weight when that was withdrawn. So it fared on the death of Atahuallpa.2
1 " Such was the awe in which the Spaniards usually misspelt it,
the Inca was held," says Pizarro, because they thought much more
"that it was only necessary for of getting treasure for themselves,
him to intimate his commands to than they did of the name of the
that effect, and a Peruvian would person who owned it.  (Hist. de
at once jump down a precipice, las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8,
hang himself, or put an end to cap. 16.) Nevertheless, I have
his life in any way that was pre- preferred the authority of Garciscribed."  Descub. y Conq., MS. lasso, who, a Peruvian himself,
2 Oviedo tells us, that the Inca's and a near kinsman of the Inca,
right name was Atabaliva, and that must be supposed to have been




CH. VIII.]       DISORDERS IN PERU.                499
His death not only left the throne vacant, without
any certain successor, but the manner of it announced to the Peruvian people that a hand stronger
than that of their Incas had now seized the sceptre,
and that the dynasty of the Children of the Sun
had passed away for ever.
The natural consequences of such a conviction
followed.   The beautiful order of the ancient institutions was broken up, as the authority which controlled it was withdrawn.     The Indians broke out
into greater excesses fiom   the uncommon restraint
to which they had been before subjected. Villages
were burnt, temples and palaces were plundered,
and the gold they contained was scattered or secreted.   Gold and silver acquired an importance in
the eyes of the Peruvian, when he saw       the importance attached to them     by his conquerors.      The
precious metals, which before served only for purposes of state or religious decoration, were now
hoarded up and buried in caves and forests.        The
gold and silver concealed by the natives were affirmed greatly to exceed in quantity that which fell
into  the  hands of the     Spaniards.3   The   remote
well informed. His countrymen, the Spaniards, said some of the
he says, pretended that the cocks Indian nobles to Benalcazar, the
imported into Peru by the Span- conqueror of Quito, was but as a
iards, when they crowed, uttered the kernel of corn, compared with the
name of Atahuallpa; " and I and heap before him." (Oviedo, Hist.
the other Indian boys," adds the de las Indias, MS., Parte 3, lib. 8,
historian, " when we were at cap. 22.) See also Pedro Pizarro,
school, used to mimic them." Descub. y Conq., MS.- Relacion
Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. 23. del Primer. Descub., MS.
3 " That which the Inca gave




600            CONQUEST OF PERU.      [BooK III.
provinces now shook off their allegiance to the Incas. Their great captains, at the head of distant
armies, set up for themselves. Ruminavi, a commander on the borders of Quito, sought to detach
that kingdom from the Peruvian empire, and to reassert its ancient independence. The country, in
short, was in that state, in which old things are passing away, and the new order of things has not yet
been established. It was in a state of revolution.
The authors of the revolution, Pizarro and his followers, remained meanwhile at Caxamalca. But the
first step of the Spanish commander was to name a
successor to Atahuallpa. It would be easier to govern under the venerated authority to which the
homage of the Indians had been so long paid; and it
was not difficult to find a successor. The true heir
to the crown was a second son of Huayna Capac,
named Manco, a legitimate brother of the unfortunate Huascar. But Pizarro had too little knowledge of the dispositions of this prince; and he
made no scruple to prefer a brother of Atahuallpa,
and to present him to the Indian nobles as their
future Inca. We know nothing of the character of
the young Toparca, who probably resigned himself
without reluctance to a destiny which, however humiliating in some points of view, was more exalted
than he could have hoped to obtain in the regular
course of events. The ceremonies attending a Peruvian coronation were observed, as well as time
would allow; the brows of the young Inca were
encircled with the imperial borla by the hands of




CH. VIII.]      MARCH TO CUZCO.              501
his conqueror, and he received the homage of his
Indian vassals. They were the less reluctant to
pay it, as most of those in the camp belonged to the
faction of Quito.
All thoughts were now eagerly turned towards
Cuzco, of which the most glowing accounts were circulated among the soldiers, and whose temples and
royal palaces were represented as blazing with gold
and silver. With imaginations thus excited, Pizarro and his entire company, amounting to almost five
hundred men, of whoml nearly a third, probably,
were cavalry, took their departure early in September from Caxamalca, -a place ever memorable as
the theatre of some of the most strange and sanguinary scenes recorded in history. All set forward
in high spirits, —the soldiers of Pizarro from the
expectation of doubling their present riches, and
Almagro's followers from the prospect of sharing
equally in the spoil with " the first conquerors."4
The young Inca and the old chief Challcuchima accompanied the march in their litters, attended by
a numerous retinue of vassals, and moving in as
much state and ceremony as if in the possession of
real power.5
Their course lay along the great road of the
Incas, which stretched across the elevated regions
4 The " first conquerors," ac- venturers. Corn. Real., Parte 1.
cording to Garcilasso, were held in lib. 7, cap. 9.
especial honor by those who came  5 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
after them, though they were, on Conq., MS.- Naharro, Relacion
the whole, men of less considera- Sumaria, MS. - Ped. Sancho,
tion and fortune than the later ad- Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 400




502             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOK III
of the Cordilleras, all the way to Cuzco. It was
of nearly a uniform breadth, though constructed
with different degrees of care, according to the
ground.6 Sometimes it crossed smooth and level
valleys, which offered of themselves little impediment to the traveller; at other times, it followed the
course of a mountain stream that flowed round the
base of some beetling cliff, leaving small space for
the foothold; at others, again, where the sierra was
so precipitous that it seemed to preclude all further
progress, the road, accommodated to the natural sinuosities of the ground, wound round the heights
which it would have been impossible to scale directly.7
But although managed with great address, it was
a formidable passage for the cavalry. The mountain was hewn into steps, but the rocky ledges cut
up the hoofs of the horses; and, though the troopers
dismounted and led them by the bridle, they suffered
severely in their efforts to keep their footing.8 The
road was constructed for man and the light-footed
llama; and the only heavy beast of burden at all
suited to it was the sagacious and sure-footed mule,
with which the Spanish adventurers were not then
provided.  It was a singular chance that Spain was
the land of the mule; and thus the country was
speedily supplied with the very animal which seems
6 "Va todo el camino de una possible poderlo pasar." Ibid.,
traza y anchura hecho a mano." MS.
Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.  8 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramu
7 " En muchas partes viendo lo sio, tom. III. fol. 404.
oue esta' adelante, parece cosa im



CH. VIII.]     MARCH TO CUZCO.            503
to have been created for the difficult passes of the
Cordilleras.
Another obstacle, often occurring, was the deep
torrents that rushed down in fury from the Andes
They were traversed by the hanging bridges of
osier, whose frail materials were after a time broken
up by the heavy tread of the cavalry, and the holes
made in them added materially to the dangers of
the passage. On such occasions, the Spaniards
contrived to work their way across the rivers on
rafts, swimming their horses by the bridle.9
All along the route they found post-houses for
the accommodation of the royal couriers, established at regular intervals; and magazines of grain
and other commodities, provided in the principal
towns for the Indian armies. The Spaniards profited by the prudent forecast of the Peruvian government.
Passing through several hamlets and towns of
some note, the principal of which were Guamachucho and Guanuco, Pizarro, after a tedious march,
came in sight of the rich valley of Xauxa. The
march, though tedious, had been attended with little
suffering, except in crossing the bristling crests of
the Cordilleras, which occasionally obstructed their
path, —a rough setting to the beautiful valleys,
that lay scattered like gems along this elevated
region. In the mountain passes they found some
inconvenience from the cold; since, to move more
9 Ibid., ubi supra. - Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.




504            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
quickly, they had disencumbered themselves of all
superfluous baggage, and were even unprovided
with tents.'1 The bleak winds of the mountains
penetrated the thick harness of the soldiers; but
the poor Indians, more scantily clothed and accustomed to a tropical climate, suffered most severely.
The Spaniard seemed to have a hardihood of body,
as of soul, that rendered him almost indifferent to
climate.
On the march they had not been molested by
enemies. But more than once they had seen vestiges of them in smoking hamlets and ruined
bridges. Reports, from time to time, had reached
Pizarro of warriors on his track; and small bodies
of Indians were occasionally seen like dusky clouds
on the verge of the horizon, which vanished as the
Spaniards approached. On reaching Xauxa, however, these clouds gathered into one dark mass of
warriors, which formed on the opposite bank of the
river that flowed through the valley.
The Spaniards advanced to the stream, which,
swollen by the melting of the snows, was now of
considerable width, though not deep. The bridge
had been destroyed; but the Conquerors, without
hesitation, dashing boldly in, advanced, swimming
and wading, as they best could, to the opposite
bank. The Indians, disconcerted by this decided
movement, as they had relied on their watery de10 " La notte dormirono tutti in souuenimento di legne ne da manquella campagna senza coperto al- giare." Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap.
cuno, sopra la neue, ne pur hebber Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 401.




CH. VIII.]     MARCH TO CUZCO.             505
fences, took to flight, after letting off an impotent
volley of missiles.  Fear gave wings to the fugitives; but the horse and his rider were swifter,
and the victorious pursuers took bloody vengeance
on their enemy for having dared even to meditate
resistance.
Xauxa was a considerable town. It was the
place already noticed as having been visited by
Hernando Pizarro. It was seated in the midst of
a verdant valley, fertilized by a thousand little rills,
which the thrifty Indian husbandman drew from
the parent river that rolled sluggishly through the
meadows. There were several capacious buildings
of rough stone in the town, and a temple of some
note in the times of the Incas. But the strong arm
of Father Valverde and his countrymen soon tumbled the heathen deities from their pride of place,
and established, in their stead, the sacred effigies
of the Virgin and Child.
Here Pizarro proposed to halt for some days, and
to found a Spanish colony.  It was a favorable
position, he thought, for holding the Indian mountaineers in check, while, at the same time, it afforded an easy communication with the sea-coast.
Meanwhile he determined to send forward De Soto,
with a detachment of sixty horse, to reconnoitre
the country in advance, and to restore the bridges
where demolished by the enemy."
11 Carta de la Justicia y Regi- — Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 5,
miento de la Ciudad de Xauja, MS. lib. 4, cap. 10. - Relacion del
-Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., Primer. Descub., MS
MS. - Conq. i Pob. del Piru, MS.
voL. I.        64




506            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III.
That active cavalier set forward at once, but
found considerable impediments to his progress.
The traces of an enemy became more frequent as
he advanced. The villages were burnt, the bridges
destroyed, and heavy rocks and trees strewed in
the path to impede the march of the cavalry.  As
he drew near to Bilcas, once an important place,
though now effaced from the map, he had a sharp
encounter with the natives, in a mountain defile,
which cost him the lives of two or three troopers.
The loss was light; but any loss was felt by the
Spaniards, so little accustomed, as they had been
of late, to resistance.
Still pressing forward, the Spanish captain crossed
the river Abancay, and the broad waters of the
Apurimac; and, as he drew near the sierra of Vilcaconga, he learned that a considerable body of Indians lay in wait for him in the dangerous passes of
the mountains.   The sierra was several leagues
from  Cuzco; and the cavalier, desirous to reach
the further side of it before nightfall, incautiously
pushed on his wearied horses. When he was fairly entangled in its rocky defiles, a multitude of
armed warriors, springing, as it seemed, from every
cavern and thicket of the sierra, filled the air with
their war-cries, and rushed down, like one of their
own mountain torrents, on the invaders, as they
were painfully toiling up the steeps.  Men and
horses were overturned in the fury of the assault,
and the foremost files, rolling back on those below, spread ruin and consternation in their ranks




CH. VIII.] ENCOUNTER WITH THE NATIVES.    507
De Soto in vain endeavoured to restore order, and,
if possible, to charge the assailants. The horses
were blinded and maddened by the missiles, while
the desperate natives, clinging to their legs, strove
to prevent their ascent up the rocky pathway.
De Soto saw, that, unless he gained a level ground
which opened at some distance before him, all
must be lost. Cheering on his men with the old
battle-cry, that always went to the heart of a
Spaniard, he struck his spurs deep into the sides
of his wearied charger, and, gallantly supported by
his troop, broke through the dark array of warriors,
and, shaking them off to the right and left, at length
succeeded in placing himself on the broad level.
Here both parties paused, as if by mutual consent, for a few moments.   A little stream  ran
through the plain, at which the Spaniards watered
their horses; 2 and the animals, having recovered
wind, De Soto and his men made a desperate charge
on their assailants. The undaunted Indians sustained the shock with firmness; and the result of
the combat was still doubtful, when the shades of
evening, falling thicker around them, separated the
combatants.
Both parties then withdrew from the field, taking
up their respective stations within bow-shot of each
other, so that the voices of the warriors on either
side could be distinctly heard in the stillness of
the night. But very different were the reflections
12 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 405.




508            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [Boox I!.
of the two hosts. The Indians, exulting in their
temporary triumph, looked with confidence to the
morrow to complete it.   The Spaniards, on the
other hand, were proportionably discouraged. They
were not prepared for this spirit of resistance
in an enemy hitherto so tame.   Several cavaliers
had fallen; one of them by a blow from a Peruvian battle-axe, which clove his head to the chin,
attesting the power of the weapon, and of the arm
that used it.13 Several horses, too, had been killed;
and the loss of these was almost as severely felt
as that of their riders, considering the great cost
and difficulty of transporting them to these distant
regions. Few either of the men or horses escaped
without wounds, and the Indian allies suffered still
more severely.
It seemed probable, from the pertinacity and a
certain order maintained in the assault, that it was
directed by some leader of military experience;
perhaps the Indian commander Quizquiz, who was
said to be hanging round the environs of Cuzco
with a considerable force.
Notwithstanding the reasonable cause of apprehension for the morrow, De Soto, like a stout-hearted
cavalier, as he was, strove to keep up the spirits
of his followers. If they had beaten off the enemy when their horses were jaded, and their own
strength nearly exhausted, how much easier it would
be to come off victorious when both were restored
13 Ibid., loc. cit.




CH. VIII.] ENCOUNTER WITH THE NATIVES.    509
by a night's rest; and he told them to " trust in the
Almighty, who would never desert his faithful followers in their extremity." The event justified
De Soto's confidence in this seasonable succour.
From time to time, on his march, he had sent advices to Pizarro of the menacing state of the country, till his commander, becoming seriously alarmed,
was apprehensive that the cavalier might be overpowered by the superior numbers of the enemy.
He accordingly detached Almagro, with nearly all
the remaining horse, to his support, -unencumbered by infantry, that he might move the lighter.
That efficient leader advanced by forced marches,
stimulated by the tidings which met him on the
road; and was so fortunate as to reach the foot of
the sierra of Vilcaconga the very night of the engagement.
There hearing of the encounter, he pushed forward without halting, though his horses were spent
with travel. The night was exceedingly dark,
and Almagro, afraid of stumbling on the enemy's
bivouac, and desirous to give De Soto information of
his approach, commanded his trumpets to sound,
till the notes, winding through the defiles of the
mountains, broke the slumbers of his countrymen,
sounding like blithest music in their ears. They
quickly replied with their own bugles, and soon had
the satisfaction to embrace their deliverers.14
Great was the dismay of the Peruvian host, when
14 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.- Herrera, Hist. General,
dec. 5, lib. 5, cap. 3.




510             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOx III
the morning light discovered the fresh reinforcement
of the ranks of the Spaniards. There was no use
in contending with an enemy who gathered strength
from the conflict, and who seemed to multiply his
numbers at will. Without further attempt to renew
the fight, they availed themselves of a thick fog,
which hung over the lower slopes of the hills, to
effect their retreat, and left the passes open to the
invaders.  The two cavaliers then continued their
march until they extricated their forces from  the
sierra, when, taking up a secure position, they proposed to await there the arrival of Pizarro.15
The commander-in-chief, meanwhile, lay at Xauxa, where he was greatly disturbed by the rumors
which reached him of the state of the country. His
enterprise, thus far, had gone forward so smoothly,
that he was no better prepared than his lieutenant
to meet with resistance from the natives.  He did
not seem to comprehend that the mildest nature
might at last be roused by oppression; and that the
massacre of their Inca, whom they regarded with
such awful veneration, would be likely, if any thing
could do it, to wake them from their apathy.
The tidings which he now received of the retreat
of the Peruvians were most welcome; and he caused
mass to be said, and thanksgivings to be offered up
15 The account of De Soto's MS., —Relacion del Primer. Des
affair with the natives is given in cub., MS.,-Pedro Pizarro, Des.
more or less detail, by Ped. San- cub. y Conq., MS., —parties al
cho, Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. present in the army.
fol. 405, - Conq. i Pob. del Piru,




CH. XIII.]   CHALLCUCHIMA BURNT.           511
to Heaven, " which had shown itself thus favorable
to the Christians throughout this mighty enterprise."'The Spaniard was ever a Crusader. He was, in the
sixteenth century, what Cceur de Lion and his brave
knights were in the twelfth, with this difference;
the cavalier of that day fought for the Cross and
for glory, while gold and the Cross were the watchwords of the Spaniard. The spirit of chivalry had
waned somewhat before the spirit of trade; but the
fire of religious enthusiasm still burned as bright
under the quilted mail of the American Conqueror,
as it did of yore under the iron panoply of the soldier of Palestine.
It seemed probable that some man of authority
had organized, or at least countenanced, this resistance of the natives, and suspicion fell on the captive
chief Challcuchima, who was accused of maintaining
a secret corresponderce —lw his confederate, Quizquiz. Pizarro waited on the Indian noble, and,
charging him with the conspiracy, reproached him,
as he had formerly done his royal master, with ingratitude towards the Spaniards, who had dealt with
him so liberally. He concluded by the assurance,
that, if he did not cause the Peruvians to lay down
their arms, and tender their submission at once, he
should be burnt alive, so soon as they reached Almagro's quarters.'6
The Indian chief listened to the terrible menace
with the utmost composure. He denied having had
16 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.- Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap.
Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 406.




512                 CONQUEST OF PERU.                [BooK III.
any communication with his countrymen, and said,
that, in his present state of confinement, at least, he
could have no power to bring them to submission.
He then remained doggedly silent, and Pizarro did
not press the     matter further.'7      But he placed       a
strong guard over his prisoner, and caused him to be
put in irons. It was an ominous proceeding, and
had been the precursor of the death of Atahuallpa.
Before quitting Xauxa, a misfortune befell the
Spaniards in the death of their creature, the young
Inca Toparca. Suspicion, of course, fell on Challcuchima, now selected as the scape-goat for all
the offences of his nation.'s It was a disappointment to Pizarro, who hoped to find a convenient
shelter for his future proceedings under this shadow
of royalty.'9
The general considered it most prudent not to
hazard the loss of his treasures by taking them on
the march, and he accordingly left them at Xauxa,
under a guard of forty soldiers, who remained there
17 Ibid., ubi supra.          another name, tore off the diadem
18 It seems, from the language  bestowed on him by Pizarro, with
of the letter addressed to the Em- disdain, and died in a few weeks
peror by the municipality of Xauxa, of chagrin. (Hist. de Quito, tom.
that the troops themselves were far I. p. 377.) This writer, a Jesuit
from being convinced of Challcu- of Quito, seems to feel himself
chima's guilt. " Publico fue, aun- bound to make out as good a case
que dello no ubo averiguacion in for Atahuallpa and his family, as
certenidad, que el capitan Chalico- if he had been expressly retained
niman le abia dado ierbas o a beber in their behalf. His vouchers -
con que murio." Carta de la Just. when he condescends to give any
y Reg. de Xauja, MS.            — too rarely bear him out in his
19 According to Velasco, Topar- statements to inspire us with much
ca, whom, however, he calls by  confidence in his correctness.




CH. VIII.]   CHALLCUCHIMA BURNT.            513
in garrison. No event of importance occurred on
the road, and Pizarro, having effected a junction
with Almagro, their united forces soon entered the
vale of Xaquixaguana, about five leagues from Cuzco. This was one of those bright spots, so often
found embosomed amidst the Andes, the more beautiful from contrast with the savage character of the
scenery around it. A river flowed through the
valley, affording the means of irrigating the soil,
and clothing it in perpetual verdure; and the rich
and flowering vegetation spread out like a cultivated
garden. The beauty of the place and its delicious
coolness commended it as a residence for the Pc
ruvian nobles, and the sides of the hills were dot
ted with their villas, which afforded them a grate
ful retreat in the heats of summer.20 Yet the centre of the valley was disfigured by a quagmire of
some extent, occasioned by the frequent overflowing of the waters; but the industry of the Indian
architects had constructed a solid causeway, faced
with heavy stone, and connected with the great
road, which traversed the whole breadth of the
morass.21
In this valley Pizarro halted for several days,
while he refreshed his troops from the well-stored
magazines of the Incas. His first act was to bring
Challcuchima to trial; if trial that could be called,
where sentence may be said to have gone hand
0 "Auia en este valle muy tomar sus plazeres y solazes."
sumptuosos aposentos y ricos adon- Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 91.
de los sefiores del Cuzco salian a  21 Ibid., ubi supra.
VOL. I.        65




A14            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [Boox III
in hand with accusation. We are not informed
of the nature of the evidence.  It was sufficient
to satisfy the Spanish captains of the chieftain's
guilt. Nor is it at all incredible that Challcuchima should have secretly encouraged a movement
among the people, designed to secure his country's
freedom and his own. He was condemned to be
burnt alive on the spot.  " Some thought it a hard
measure," says Herrera; "but those who are governed by reasons of state policy are apt to shut
their eyes against every thing else." 22 Why this
cruel mode of execution was so often adopted by
the Spanish Conquerors is not obvious; unless it
was that the Indian was an infidel, and fire, from
ancient date, seems to have been considered the fitting doom of the infidel, as the type of that inextinguishable flame which awaited him in the regions
of the damned.
Father Valverde accompanied the Peruvian chieftain to the stake. He seems always to have been
present at this dreary moment, anxious to profit by
it, if possible, to work the conversion of the victim.
He painted in gloomy colors the dreadful doom of
the unbeliever, to whom the waters of baptism could
alone secure the ineffable glories of paradise.23 It
does not appear that he promised any commutation
of punishment in this world. But his arguments
fell on a stony heart, and the chief coldly replied,
he "did not understand the religion of the white
22 Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 6,  23 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Racap. 3.                 musio, tom. III. fol. 406.




CH. VIII.]   CHALLCUCHIMA BURNT.           515
men." 24 He might be pardoned for not comprehending the beauty of a faith which, as it would
seem, had borne so bitter fruits to him. In the midst
of his tortures, he showed the characteristic courage
of the American Indian, whose power of endurance
triumphs over the power of persecution in his enemies, and he died with his last breath invoking the
name of Pachacamac. His own followers brought
the fagots to feed the flames that consumed him.25
Soon after this tragic event, Pizarro was surprised
by a visit from a Peruvian noble, who came in great
state, attended by a numerous and showy retinue.
It was the young prince Manco, brother of the unfortunate Huascar, and the rightful successor to the
crown. Being brought before the Spanish commander, he announced his pretensions to the throne,
and claimed the protection of the strangers.  It is
said he had meditated resisting them by arms, and
had encouraged the assaults made on them on their
march; but, finding resistance ineffectual, he had
taken this politic course, greatly to the displeasure
of his more resolute nobles. However this may be,
Pizarro listened to his application with singular con
tentment, for he saw in this new scion of the true
royal stock, a more effectual instrument for his
purposes than he could have found in the family of
Quito, with whom the Peruvians had but little sym24 Ibid., loc. cit.   so much damaged in this part of it,
25 Ibid., loc. cit. - Pedro Pi- that much of his account is entirely
zarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.  effaced.
The MS. of the old Conqueror is




b16             CONQUEST OF PERU.         [BOOK II1
pathy. He received the young man, therefore, with
great cordiality, and did not hesitate to assure him
that he had been sent into the country by his master, the Castilian sovereign, in order to vindicate the
claims of Huascar to the crown, and to punish the
usurpation of his rival.26
Taking with him the Indian prince, Pizarro now
resumed his march. It was interrupted for a few
hours by a party of the natives, who lay in wait for
him in the neighbouring sierra. A sharp skirmish
ensued, in which the Indians behaved with great
spirit, and inflicted some little injury on the Spaniards; but the latter, at length, shaking them  off,
made good their passage through the defile, and the
enemy did not care to follow them into the open
country.
It was late in the afternoon when the Conquerors
came in sight of Cuzco.27 The descending sun
was streaming his broad rays full on the imperial
city, where many an altar was dedicated to his worship. The low ranges of buildings, showing in his
beams like so many lines of silvery light, filled up
the bosom of the valley and the lower slopes of the
mountains, whose shadowy forms hung darkly over
the fair city, as if to shield it from the menaced
profanation.  It was so late, that Pizarro resolved
to defer his entrance till the following morning.'6 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ra- Sol se pusiese, llegaron a vista de
musio, tom. III. fol. 406.- Pedro la ciudad del Cuzco." Relacion
Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.  del Primer. Descub., MS.
27 " Y dos horas antes que el




CH. VIII.]     ARRIVAL IN CUZCO.          517
That night vigilant guard was kept in the camp,
and the soldiers slept on their arms. But it passed
away without annoyance from the enemy, and early
on the following day, November 15, 1533, Pizarro
prepared for his entrance into the Peruvian capital.28
The little army was formed into three divisions,
of which the centre, or " battle," as it was called,
was led by the general. The suburbs were thronged
with a countless multitude of the natives, who had
flocked from the city and the surrounding country to
witness the showy, and, to them, startling pageant.
All looked with eager curiosity on the strangers, the
fame of whose terrible exploits had spread to the
remotest parts of the empire. They gazed with
astonishment on their dazzling arms and fair complexions, which seemed to proclaim them the true
Children of the Sun; and they listened with feelings of mysterious dread, as the trumpet sent forth
its prolonged notes through the streets of the capital, and the solid ground shook under the heavy
tramp of the cavalry.
The Spanish commander rode directly up the
great square. It was surrounded by low piles ol
buildings, among which were several palaces of the
Incas. One of these, erected by Huayna Capac,
was surmounted by a tower, while the ground-floor
was occupied by one or more immense halls, like
28 The chronicles differ as to cho's narrative and the Letter of
the precise date. There can be no the Magistrates of Xauxa, which 1
better authorities than Pedro San- have followed in the text




518                 CONQUEST OF PERU.                [BOOK III
those described     in  Caxamalca, where the Peruvian
nobles held their fetes in stormy weather. These
buildings afforded convenient barracks for the troops,
though, during the first few weeks, they remained
under their tents in the open plaza, with their horses
picketed   by their side, ready      to repulse any insurrection of the inhabitants.29
The capital of the Incas, though falling short of
the El Dorado which had engaged their credulous
fancies, astonished the Spaniards by the beauty of
its edifices, the length and regularity of its streets,
and the good order and appearance of comfort, even
luxury, visible in its numerous population.             It far
surpassed all they had yet seen in the New World.
The population of the city is computed by one of
the Conquerors at two hundred thousand inhabitants, and    that of the suburbs at as many more.30
This   account is     not confirmed, as far as I have
29 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ra- Pob. del Piru, MS.)  The vecino
musio, tom. III. fol. 407.-Gar- or "householder" is computed,
cilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. usually, as representing five indi7, cap. 10. - Relacion del Primer. viduals. - Yet Father Valverde,
Descub., MS.                    in a letter written a few years after
30 " Esta ciudad era muy grande this, speaks of the city as having
i mui populosa de grandes edificios only three or four thousand houses
i comarcas, quando los Espanioles at the time of its occupation, and
entraron Ia primera vez en ella the suburbs as having nineteen or
havia gran cantidad de gente, seria twenty thousand.  (Carta al Empueblo de mas de 40 mill. vecinos perador, MS., 20 de Marzo, 1539.)
solamente lo que tomaba la ciudad, It is possible that he took into the
que arravalles i comarca en deredor account only the better kind of
del Cuzco a 10 6 12 leguas creo yo houses, not considering the mud
que havia docientos mill. Indios huts, or rather hovels, which made
porque esto era lo mas poblado de so large a part of a Peruvian town,
todos estos reinos."  (Conq. i as deserving notice.




CH. VIII.]   DESCRIPTION OF THE CITY.          519
seen, by any other writer. But however it may be
exaggerated, it is certain that Cuzco was the metropolis of a great empire, the residence of the
Court and the chief nobility; frequented by the
most skilful mechanics and artisans of every description, who found a demand for their ingenuity
in the royal precincts; while the place was garrisoned by a numerous soldiery, and was the resort,
finally, of emigrants from the most distant provinces.
The quarters whence this motley population came
were indicated by their peculiar dress, and especially their head-gear, so rarely found at all on the
American Indian, which, with its variegated colors, gave a picturesque effect to the groups and
masses in the streets.    The habitual order and
decorum maintained in this multifarious assembly
showed the excellent police of the capital, where
the only sounds that disturbed the repose of the
Spaniards were the noises of feasting and dancing,
which the natives, with happy insensibility, constantly prolonged to a late hour of the night.31
The edifices of the better sort-and they were
very numerous - were of stone, or faced with
stone.32  Among the principal were the royal residences; as each sovereign built a new palace for
31 "l Heran tantos los atambores  32," La maggior parte di queste
que de noche se oian por todas case sono di pietra, et l'altre hano
partes bailando y cantando y be- la meta della facciata di pietra.'
viendo que toda la mayor parte de Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio,
la noche se les pasava en esto tom. III. fol. 413.
cotidianamente." Pedro Pizarro,
Descub. y Conq., MS.




L20                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [BOOK III,
himself, covering, though low, a large extent of
ground.     The    walls were     sometimes     stained   or
painted with gaudy tints, and the gates, we are
assured, were sometimes of colored marble.33           " In
the delicacy of the stone-work," says another of the
Conquerors, "the natives far excelled the Spaniards, though the roofs of their dwellings, instead
of tiles, were only of thatch, but put together with
the nicest art." 34   The sunny climate of Cuzco did
not require a very substantial material for defence
against the weather.
The most important building was the fortress,
planted on a solid rock, that rose boldly above the
city. It was built of hewn stone, so finely wrought
that it was impossible to detect the line of junction
between the blocks; and the approaches to it
were defended by three semicircular parapets, composed of such heavy masses of rock, that it bore
resemblance to the kind of work known to architects as the Cyclopean.         The   fortress was raised
to a height rare in Peruvian architecture; and from
33 " Che sono le principali della  34 " Todo labrado de piedra muy
citth dipinte et lauorate, et di prima, que cierto toda la canteria
pietra: et la miglior d'esse e la desta cibdad hace gran ventaja a
casa di Guainacaba Cacique vec- la de Espana, aunque carecen de
chio, et la porta d'essa e di marmo  teja que todas las casas sino es la
bianco et rosso, et d'altri colori." fortaleza, que era hecha de azoteas
(Ibid., ubi supra.) The buildings son cubiertas de paja, aunque tan
were usually of freestone. There primamente puesta, que parece
may have been porphyry from the bien."  Relacion del Primer. Desneighbouring mountains mixed with cub., MS.
this, which the Spaniards mistook
for marble.




CH. VIII.]      DESCRIPTION    OF THE CITY.               521
the summit of the tower the eye of the spectator
ranged over a magnificent prospect, in which the
wild features of the mountain scenery, rocks, woods,
and waterfalls, were mingled with the rich verdure
of the valley, and the shining city filling up the
foreground,-     all blended     in  sweet harmony under
the deep azure of a tropical sky.
The streets were long and narrow. They were
arranged with perfect regularity, crossing one another at right angles; and from the great square diverged four principal streets connecting with the
high   roads of the empire.        The    square itself, and
many    parts   of the city, were       paved    with   a fine
pebble.35 Through the heart of the capital ran a
river of pure water, if it might not be rather termed
a canal, the banks or sides of which, for the distance of twenty leagues, were faced with stone 36
35 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ra- chas de canteria. esta en una ladera
musio, tom. III., ubi supra.    de un zerro en el cual sobre el pueblo
A passage in the Letter of the esta una fortaleza mui bien obrada
Municipality of Xauxa is worth  de canteria, tan de ver que por
quoting, as confirming on the best Espanoles que han andado Reinos
authority some of the interesting  estranos dicen no haver visto otro
particulars mentioned in the text. edeficio igual al della."  Carta de'Esta cibdad es la mejor e maior la Just. y Reg. de Xauja, MS.
que en la tierra se ha visto, i aun  36," Un rio, el cual baja por
en Yndias; e decimos a V. M. ques medio de la cibdad y desde que
tan hermosa i de tan buenos edefi- nace, mas de veinte leguas por
cios que en Espaia seria muy de aquel valle abajo donde hay muchas
ver; tiene las calles por mucho con- poblaciones, va enlosado todo por
cierto en pedradas i por medio dellas ei suelo, y las varrancas de una
un cafo enlosado. la plaza es hecha parte y de otra hechas de canteria
en cuadra i empedrada de quijas labrada, cosa nunca vista, ni oida."'
pequerias todas, todas las mas de las Relacion del Primer. Descub., MS.
casas son de Sefores Principales heVOL. I.             66




522               CONQUEST OF PERU.            [BOOK I1I
Across this stream, bridges, constructed of similar
broad  flags, were    thrown, at intervals, so as to
afford an easy communication between the different
quarters of the capital.37
The most sumptuous edifice in Cuzco, in the
times of the Incas, was undoubtedly the great temple dedicated to the Sun, which, studded with gold
plates, as already noticed, was surrounded by convents and dormitories for the priests, with their gardens and broad parterres sparkling with gold. The
exterior ornaments had been already removed by the
Conquerors, - all but the frieze of gold, which, imbedded in the stones, still encircled the principal
building.   It is probable that the tales of wealth, so
greedily circulated among the Spaniards, greatly exceeded the truth.    If they did not, the natives must
have been very successful in concealing their treasures from the invaders. Yet much still remained,
not only in the great House of the Sun, but in the
inferior temples which swarmed in the capital.
Pizarro, on entering Cuzco, had issued an order
forbidding any soldier to offer violence to the dwellings of the inhabitants.33 But the palaces were
numerous, and the tro,2s lost no time in plundering
them of their contents, as well as in despoiling the
37 The reader will find a few  unavoidable in order to give a disrepetitions in this chapter of what tinct image of the capital.
I have already said, in the Intro-  38 c" Pues mando el marquez dar
duction, of Cuzco under the Incas. vn pregon que ningun espaiiol fuese
But the facts here stated are for a entrar en las casas de los natuthe most part drawn from other rales 6 tomalles nada."  Pedro
sources, and some repetition was Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS




CH. VIII.]    TREASURE FOUND THERE.              523
religious edifices. The interior decorations supplied
them with considerable booty. They stripped off
the jewels and rich ornaments that garnished the
royal mummies in the temple of Coricancha. Indignant at the concealment of their treasures,
they put the inhabitants, in some instances, to the
torture, and endeavoured to extort from them a confession of their hiding-places.39  They invaded the
repose of the sepulchres, in which the Peruvians
often deposited their valuable effects, and compelled
the grave to give up its dead. No place was left
unexplored by the rapacious Conquerors, and they
occasionally stumbled on a mine of wealth that rewarded their labors.
In a cavern near the city they found a number of
vases of pure gold, richly embossed with the figures
of serpents, locusts, and other animals. Among the
spoil were four golden llamas and ten or twelve statues of women, some of gold, others of silver, " which
merely to see," says one of the Conquerors, with
some naivete, "was      truly a  great satisfaction."
The gold was probably thin, for the figures were all
as large as life; and several of them, being reserved
for the royal fifth, were not recast, but sent in their
original form  to  Spain.40   The   magazines were
3) Gonlara, Hist. de las Ind., belle et ben fatte come se fosser
cap 123.                   vine...... Queste furono date
41' " Et fra l'altre cose singolari, nel quinto che toccaua a S. M."
era veder quattro castrati di fin oro (Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio,
inolto grandi, et 10 6 12 statue di tom. III. fol. 409.) " Muchas estadone, della grandezza delle done di tuas y figuras de oro y plata entequel paese tutte d'oro fino, cosi ras, hecha la forma toda de una




b24                CONQUEST OF PERU.               [Boox III.
stored with curious commodities; richly tinted robes
of cotton and feather-work, gold sandals, and slippers of the     same   material, for the     women, and
dresses composed entirely of beads of gold.41 The
grain and other articles of food, with which the
magazines were filled, were held in contempt by the
Conquerors, intent only on gratifying their lust for
gold.42   The time came when the grain would have
been of far more value.
Yet the amount of treasure in the capital did not
equal the sanguine expectations that had been
formed by the Spaniards. But the deficiency was
supplied by the plunder which they had collected at
various places on their march. In one place, for
example, they met with ten planks or bars of solid
silver, each piece being twenty feet in length, one
foot in breadth, and two or three inches thick.
They were intended to decorate the dwelling of an
Inca noble.43
The whole mass of treasure was brought into a
muger, y del tamaio della, muy   42 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., MS.
bien labradas."  Relacion del Pri-  43 "Pues andando yo buscando
mer. Descub., MS.              mahiz 6 otras cosas para comer,
41 "A Avia ansi mismo otras mu- acaso entre en vn buhio donde
chas plumas de diferentes colores halle estos tablones de plata que
para este efecto de hacer rropas tengo dicho que heran hasta diez
que vestian los senores y sefioras y de Iargo tenian veinte pies y de
y no otro en los tiempos de sus anchor de vno y de gordor de tres
fiestas; avia tambien mantas hechas dedos, di noticia dello al marquez
de chaquira, de oro, y de plata, que y el y todos los demas que con el
heran vnas quentecitas muy delica- estavan entraron a vello."  Pedro
das, que parecia cosa de espanto  Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., MS.
ver su hechura." Pedro Pizarro,
Descub. y Conq., MS.




CH. VIII.]  TREASURE FOUND THERE.         525
common heap, as in Caxamalca; and after some
of the finer specimens had been deducted for the
Crown, the remainder was delivered to the Indian
goldsmiths to be melted down into ingots of a uniform standard. The division of the spoil was made
on the same principle as before. There were four
hundred and eighty soldiers, including the garrison
of Xauxa, who were each to receive a share, that of
the cavalry being double that of the infantry. The
amount of booty is stated variously by those present
at the division of it. According to some, it considerably exceeded the ransom of Atahuallpa. Others
state it as less. Pedro Pizarro says that each
horseman got six thousand pesos de oro, and each
one of the infantry half that sum;44 though the
same discrimination was made by Pizarro as before,
in respect to the rank of the parties, and their relative services. But Sancho, the royal notary, and
secretary of the commander, estimates the whole
amount as far less,- not exceeding five hundred
and eighty thousand and two hundred pesos de oro,
and two hundred and fifteen thousand marks of silver.45 In the absence of the official returns, it is
impossible to determine which is correct. But
Sancho's narrative is countersigned, it may be remembered, by Pizarro and the royal treasurer
Riquelme, and doubtless, therefore, shows the actual amount for which the Conquerors accounted
to the Crown.
44 Descub. y Conq., MS.
45 Ped. Sancho, Rel., ap. Ramusio, tom. III. fol. 409.




026            CONQUEST OF PERU.        [BOOK III,
Whichever statement we receive, the sum, combined with that obtained at Caxamalca, might well
have satisfied the cravings of the most avaricious.
The sudden influx of so much wealth, and that, too,
in so transferable a form, among a party of reckless adventurers little accustomed to the possession
of money, had its natural effect. It supplied them
with the means of gaming, so strong and common
a passion with the Spaniards, that it may be considered a national vice.  Fortunes were lost and
won in a single day, sufficient to render the proprietors independent for life; and many a desperate
gamester, by an unlucky throw of the dice or turn
of the cards, saw himself stripped in a few hours
of the fruits of years of toil, and obliged to begin
over again the business of rapine.  Among these,
one in the cavalry service is mentioned, named Leguizano, who had received as his share of the booty
the image of the Sun, which, raised on a plate of
burnished gold, spread over the walls in a recess
of the great temple, and which, for some reason or
other, - perhaps because of its superior fineness, -
was not recast like the other ornaments.  This rich
prize the spendthrift lost in a single night; whence
it came to be a proverb in Spain, Jzega el Sol antes
que amanzczca, " Play away the Sun before sunrise." 46
The effect of such a surfeit of the precious met
als was instantly felt on prices. The most ordinary
46 Garcilasso, Corn. Real., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 20




CH. VIII.]  TREASURE FOUND THERE.         527
articles were only to be had for exorbitant sums. A
quire of paper sold for ten pesos de oro; a bottle of
wine, for sixty; a sword, for forty or fifty; a cloak,
for a hundred, - sometimes more; a pair of shoes
cost thirty or forty pesos de oro, and a good horse
could not be had for less than twenty-five hundred.47
Some brought a still higher price.  Every article
rose in value, as gold and silver, the representatives
of all, declined. Gold and silver, in short, seemed
to be the only things in Cuzco that were not wealth.
Yet there were some few wise enough to return
contented with their present gains to their native
country. Here their riches brought them consideration and competence, and, while they excited the
envy of their countrymen, stimulated them to seek
their own fortunes in the like path of adventure.
47 Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. II1. p. 233
END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.