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VI.
R~yal
Commentaries.
bad occurred in War and Peace; as alfo of Embaffies from .foreign Pnnces, and
the feveral Negotiations with them; which Work
was
the Office of the
l'2!:!_ipu-
·
maym,
who made
fome
{hort and concife Memoir, leaving the
reft
to_
the rernem-
•
brance of the Age, who by tradition
conferv~d
the ..
fame
to
fucceedmg Genera–
tions: And herein every Province was particularly attent, and carefull
~o
con–
ferve the Hifiory of its own Countrey ;
for
on that , and on the Acbons of
their Anceftour
they much efteemed and valued themfelves. The
AmautM,
oi:
Philofophers, fdr a farther help to. Hill:ory, did compofe. certain Novels, or
Fa–
bles,
mixed with true paffages, which they made
fo
familiar'· and eafie to the
capacity of Children , and common People , that
th~y
attentively hearkened ro
them and were fo pleafed
with
them, that recounting them one to the other
in
co:nmon Difcourfe, and way of Converfation, they
fo
inculcated them into
the
minds of the hearers, that the Tale becoming common, was transferred from
·one Generation to another. The Poets likewife, whom rhey
call
HaravicUJ,
were
great Coafervators of Hillery ; for they
in
verfe, and in 1hort and compendious
Sentences couched the Aetioos of their King, fuch as the Embaflies he received,
the Anfwers he gave, the Barrels he won, and the Triumphs
he
celebrated; and
that
wherein the
~ipm,
and the
AmautM
came fhort, \''as all fupplied by the
fancy
of Poets, whofe Verfes ferved
for
Sonnets, and Ballads, whi h they
fang
at
cheir Fefiivals, and on the days
of
Ttriumph.
All
which notwithfianding
we
e
faint
Reprefentations and imperfeet Confervatories of true Hill:ory, in comparifon
of
the Report we deliver t0 faithfutl-Writings and Letters, which perpetuate
the memory of Action to all Ages. Howfoever we
may
here obferve the inge–
nuity of that people , who aifayed and offered
at
fomething like our Letters,
though
it
were by Knots, and Novels, and Hiei:oglyphicks, and Ver{es; fuch
is
the defire of Mankind
to
perpetuate their Beings in the memory .and minds of
all Ages.
When
any
Curaca,
or Noble Perfon
J
deGred to know, and be informed of
things pa:!fed, and matters occurring in their Provinces, they prefently
fi
nt
to the
~ipucamaym
to be fatisfied in their demands; artd they, or their Under-Officers,
who kept the Regifiers, making fearch into their
KnL
ts and Cyphers, made
fuch
Anfivers as appeared
in
their Regifier.
.
By the fame Rule, they anfwered the Enquiries made
ofLa~s,
and Rites, and
· Ceremonies, which were expre!fed by the colour of their Knots; and
of \l\'hat
punifhment was inflieted for fuch and fuch Crimes. By the fame Rule al
o
they
were put
in
mind of the Sacrifices and Ceremonies which were to be erformed
at
the feveral Fefiivals, celebrated
in
honour of the Sun; with what provHion
was made
for
O rphans, and Widows, and Poor, and Travellers, and
of all
other
matters which were committed to the cufiody of Tradition: For thefe feveral
·
Knots ferved to put them in mind of-all particulars, whlch they defired to· have
remembred; for as we by the number Ten remember the ten Commandments,
and by other numbers call to mind the Sacraments, good Works, and A& of
M~rcy,
vvllich we learn in our CatechHin,
fo
thefe
Indians,
by the[e Knots, and
Stnngs, and Colours, remembred more perfeCl:ly what their Fathers had delive–
red to them by Tradition; which they regarded with refpea: and reverence due
to the facred
Co~fervator~es
of that
~aw,
and
~~olatrous
Religion, which they
profeffed_; for without
~hIS
help, .havmg no
W
nangs, they would certainly have
been as ignorant of
~err
own H1fiory, as the
Spaniards
themfelves are, o any
other Smrn&ers, or Aheos. The knowledge which
I
had. of their
~ipiu,
and
Kno~,
I
gamed by the means of fome
Indians,
who ferved my Father, and of
•ce~am
<;uracM,
who came every_ Midfummer and Chrifhnas
to
the
City, to
pay
therr -~nbute;
and
the~e Cura~M
deGred my Mother that !he v:muld prevail with
me faithfully
~o
examme their Accounts, and read the AcR_uittances which the
Spaniards
had
giv~n
them,
for
~hey
were jea!ous
of
their attings, and repofed much
more
~nfidence
m me, than
10
them; whKh when I had perufed
and read
tQ
the~, the~
compared them
w~th
their Knots, and finding them to
~gree,
they re–
IPamed
fatisfied.
And
by this
means I
came to
have
fome knowledge
in
their
way of Accounts.
CHAP~