1014 / 1060
Royal
Commentaries.
BOOK
VIII.
to
cl
ar, and
explain
more at large.
It is true., that
Martir/
de Robles
did
fay
fame fuch
word~,
which were to be taken in another Senfe: For (as we have faid
before) when the Vice-King wrote Letters from
Payta,
to
the
feveral Gover–
nours
and Juftices of the
Empire.,
giving them to underftaod the news
of
his
arrival in that Country; the Supt'. rfcription of hi Letters were in this man–
ner,
To the Noble Lord
of fuch a place : And
in
the Letter he treated them
with Thou, which
was the common Stile to what perfon ofQuality foever · the
which manner ofwriting gave great o
ffenceover all
Peru
:
For in thofe days: and
a long time afterwards, perfons of
Q!
iali.ty,and fucb as were rich
in
that Coun–
try,
always
ufed in Writing to their Servants, the Title of Noble,
fayin.g
To
'the Noble-and
within the Letter they wrote
fometimes
in the fecond, 'and
fometimes
in the third perfon, according to his Condition and Office wherein
he ferved : and this Cuftom prevailed., until fuch time as a Pragmatica came forth
to regulate the Terms of Honour which were given. But
in
regard the Letters
from the Vice King were in another Form and Stile, they gave offence to
fuch
evil M n, who wer defirous of Change and difturbances ; and caufed them,
with
refleetion on the prefent Vice-King, to commend,and praife the Civility of thofe
who were formerly in the
fame power,
who
in
all their Letters
ufed..
1'erms of
Ref peel:.,
according to
the
Quality and
Merit
of
the
perfon. My
Father
Garfi–
laf[o
being thenGovernour
of
Cr;z..co,
rec ived a Letter from the
Vice-King
with
th fame Title and Superfcription; which
fome
asked him how he could brook,or
how be could
endure
!ucb a negleet? To which
my
Father made
anfwer.,
that he
could b
ar
it
very well; fioce that the Vice-King wrote to
him,
not barely
by
the
ame of
Garftlajfo
de
la
Vega,
bot with the
addition
of Governour of
Coz..'co,
which fhewed him to be hisOfficer,and Minift r under him; and that
very
fhortly
they
fhould fee
how the
Vice-King
would change theForm,and
Stile
of theSuper–
fcription of bis Letters to him : Which accordingly happened, for about eight
days afterwards, the Vice-King being at
R £mac,
he wrote a Letter to
my
Father,
dirclted in this
manner,
To the Right
WorjhipfNl Senior
Garpilaf!o
de la
Vega,
&c.
and
within he
treated him with fuch Terms, as might become an
Elder
Bro.
ther towards his younger; at which, thofe who
faw
it did much admire. I have
had both thefe Letters in
my
cuftody,
for at that time I ferved
my
father in qua–
lity
of his
Clark, and
wrote
all
the Letters which he difpatched to feveral parts of
the Empire; and
in
like manner, I
gave
the Anfwer to both thefe
Letters.
But to
return to the Story
of
M.artin
de
Robles~
from whkh we have made this digreffion.
The Truth thereofis this, Oneofthefi.rft Letters from the
Vice-King,
was bare–
ly
in this manner,
To the
Governour
of the Charca.s,
and no more; which
gave
<lccafion to the huffing, vapouring Fellows to fay, the Vke-King was very un–
civil, and rude, to write in fuch a mean manner to Governours, who taking all
things together, both as to their Eftates and Qgalities., were as good men as him–
felf,
Upon
this,
it
was
faid,
that
Marrin
de
Robles
fbould utter thefe
words,
Let
him come
hither,
and we jhall teach him
better
manners.
But this he faid in man–
ner ofa
J
eft ; for on lefs occafion than this, as
P
alentino
faith,
he ufed great
liberty
with
his
Tongue.
For be
would
never for his Jeft
take
fpare his Friend,
or
his
Wife
her
felf: And when fome
of
his intimate acquaintance
would
blame hisin–
difcretion (as fometimes
they
did) for taking fuch freedom in his fpeech; he
would anfwer, that he would ratherlofe a Friencl, than a quick witty faying, ut·
tered opportunely in its due time and place; and upon this fancy the poor man
io.lthis
life.
Bot as to his conternment in the misfortunes of
Blafao
N11nnez..,
all
that matter was
abfolutely
forgot, and laid afide,
13
years having
pafie9
fince
that time; and even then this
Martin de
Robles
performed many, and)ignal
fervices for his Majefty, for in that very critical juncture of
Affairs,
he with
much
danger of his
Life.,
revolted from
Gon;alo
Ptfarro
to the Prefident
Gafca.,
whom he faithfully
fc
r ved ., until the end
of
that
War ;
for which the Prefident
rewarded him as we have b fore related. In like manner, he ferved
in
the Wars
againft
...
Don
Sebaftian,
and
Francifco H ernandex. Giron,
in
both which he
frankly
laid out hisEftate, and neither fpared his Silver nor bis Gold,to ferve hisMaJefty;
by
which Merit, he obtained
b1s
Pardon for his paft Crimes, being granted by
the
Prefident
Gafall,
and confirmed
by
the
Jufrices
1
under the Great Seal of the
Royal
Chancery.
CHAP.