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R..Oyal
Commentaries.
• guards, he was there
deueined,
until hi Meffage was fignified to the
Inc-a
after
which being
aqmitted,
a
Council
was
c~lled
of
all
the Captains and
Go
er–
nours,
who were
Tutours to the
Prine€,
for
he being
in his
Minority,
had not
(as we have
faid)
as
yet
bound his Head
wit~
the coloured
Wreath.
Th
e Cap–tains having receiv d
this Meffage., were
jealous of · the reality
thereof~
thou.ghbrought to the!D
by
a Kinfman : And therefore
n~t
being over-hafty t
o give.
Cre~ence
thereunto, another Meffi
nger
was
difpatched
to
Coi:..co,
in behalfof the
lnca,to
fpy
and
difcover
what deceit and fraud might be under this fpedous over-
. ture ;
for they did much diftruft the fincerity of the
Speniards,1
eeping
ftill
in me–
. mor:Y the deat:h of
.Atahualpa.,
and
othertheir
faithlefs and treacherous practices· :
And until the return of this
M~lfenger,
and his.AUociates, tbo[e fent from
Coz..co
· were
d tained
as
Hoftages,
an~ Ple~ges
for
better fecurity of the
honeft and due
perform?nces
by
the
Spaniards.
The Meifeoger.was farther
inftrutl:ed>that
after he
had applied
himfelf to.the
lnfantaDon.naBeatri.z.,hefhould
difcourfo
farth
ron the
bufinefs with
the Governour of
Coz..co,
and
o~her
Perfons,
who
might fecure them
of their fears,and from
the
apprehenfi'ons
they
had
of
falfe and
faithlefs defigns ·;
and ihould deilre both of
che Gov€rnour,
and
Donna Eeatri:;:-,
to fend
unto
Jdhn
Sierra de Leguicamo
her Son
by
/Y./ancio Sierra de J;eveica17Jo,
who
was one. of
the
firft
Conquerours,
to
deal
faithfolly
with them in this matter, and
give ro
them
his.real
opinion, whether
they
might truft without Scruple, or doubt of the
propofition
a
nd offer which was made ,.to them. The Governour, and the
lnff,f,nta
were
both.pl,eafed at the·coming
~<?f
this Meffenger from
the
1nctt,.
and ·
with him fen
t Letters to
John Sierra,
that
as he was a near
Kinfman
to.the
In–
ca,
he fhould dear clearly with him, and
affure
him that there was
no
othei: defign
in the Invitation, thah to fee him abroad,and
OU
f
thofe Mountains, to.the great
Joy and Contentment of all his
elations. Bnt
whilft
thefe matters were in
trea'ty at
Co.z.co;
the.Vice- Kiog,
being
impatient
to fee
an
end of
t:his
N
egotia-
. t:ion,whi
ch•he thought would be over-long and tedious
oy
other hands.,di patch–
ed away
immediately
from
hirnfelf
a
D<imtnican
Frier.,
whom
Falenti?Jb
calls
Mel–
chior
de
Los
Reyes,
~nd
with him a
eitizen
of
Coz..co,
named
John
Betrtnpos
the
Husband
of
JJonnte Angelina.,
the
Daughter
of
Inca Atahualpa,
of whoro
we
have
f0rmerly
made mention :.
.this
'john de Betanpos
pretended to
be very skilful
in
the /
Genetai I;anguage of
the .Country,
for which .
reafon,
and
for
the relation
he
had
by
his Wife to the
Prine~
Sayri
71-$pac.,
he was fent in company
with
the
Frier.,
to·
ferve for an
Interpreter,
and
to
explain
·the
Letters,
and
the Subftance
of the Embaffie upon
which they
were
employed .
.
Thefe
two
Ambaffadours,
in
obedience
to the Vke-Kings Commands,,
made
all the
hafte
they were able, and
eodevourecl.. to get admittance to th.e
Inca,
by way
of the City of
H1'amanca,
which
was the neareft
Frontierof
any to
the entrance into the
Mount;ains, where
t.heInca
made his
place
of Refideoce : For which. r.eafon the
Spaniards
gave the
name to that Town.,
of
St.
cyohn
of the
Frontier~ beca~fe
it
bordered near
the
aboad
of the /near
;
and
was (when the Country was
fa: ft
conquered
by
the
Spa-
• ·
niards)
po.ffefl.edby
them on St.
'John's
clay.
But they
could
by
no means pro–
cure ad
mittanceby
this way ; for the
Indian
Captains and
Governours,
.fearing
left . th
Spanin.rds
fhould take tltem upon fo.rprize.,
~nd
carry
their
Prince away
from them, had
fo
cut offall the Avenues, that no Perfon, without their Licenfe.,
could approach the
plave of
their
Habitation. Whernfore the Frier, and
John
de Betanfos
took a
compafs rwenty
Leagues
f~rther
by
the high Road, to
try
if
they
could
get
entrance
by
the way of
AlltahutJtyfla.,
but.here.alfo
they
w<;-re
difap–
poin ted : All which being aQ.vifed
by
the
Indi~ns
to the
Governour
of
Coz..co,
be
wrote a Letter to the Ambaifadours, that
'they
fuould not 1-abour farther to no
purpofe, but: fhould come to
Coz,co,
where
they
fuould find di\ections in what
manner to proceed.
In the following Chapter we !hall fet forth at large.,
wlia~
palled
in this particular affair, according to the Narrative of
Palent.ino,
extracted
verbatim
from his
own Words:
whereby we
IJ].ay
obferve,with what Prudence
and
Caution the
Indians
proceeaed in this affair; and
ho~
p udentl.Y
they
governed
their Artifices., \\"hereby to
dif
coverthe Cheats and Frauds whJch the
Spaniards
concealed
under their
f
pecious
offe.rs;
with
many
other
things obfervable
on
the
part
of the.
lndi~ns.
·CH A
p.