474 / 1060
45 ')
Royal
Con11nentariPf.
BooK
I.
CH AP.
XXIII.
,
Of the
Dtfficzdty
there was
to
interpret the fenfe and mea–
nina
of
thi1
Spfech
of
Friar
Vic nt
e Vaher
U
Pon
tl ·
peech
Bltu Valera
mak
Come
Reflexion , in order to the better
underfranding of his Hifl:ory ; faying, that the HiH:orians which treat of
rhefe maner
make mention of thi Speech of
the
riar, but
howfoever
ich
fome
ariery, for fome leave out the
firft
part, and ochers the fecond, and fom
ha\ e abbre
i
red
it
in
their
Relations.
But
howfoever
B/114
Valera
faith,
that
'/oh'
de
Oftvtt )
and
Chriftopher de Medina'
who were Priefis) and skilfull
in
the
lndiM
Lan uage, and feveral other Writers, ha e fpecified
thi
pee~h
at large in borh
parr , as
fi
oken by
riar
in~ent;
and they
all agree, that
it
w~
a
rnoft
tare
and
rude
eech, without any mixture of
f
weernefs
or
allurement \ harfoever,
and
rhat the Interpretation thereof was much
orfe, as
{hall
fee
hereafter~
and
rhefe Authours do much
more
approve
the
Speech
whi
h
Hernmulo
de
Sota
and
P1p 1rro
made to
AtabHa(pa,
being more gentle,
and modefl:, than
the
fbarp,
and
ill-natured peech of riar
Pi'1cent.
And
n
w
a
to the Interpretation
which was rpade
to
King
~(l1witp11
of
chefe
ords, we
may
believe
it
was very imperfetl: and corrupt; for
this
Philip
rhe
In.
dian,
,~:ho '~as
all
the
Interpreter
they
had, was
a
Native of the
Ifland
of
P111111,
and
born of common and blockifh Parents , and was fcarce arrived to
the
age of
twenty two year
and was not onely
ill
learned in t:he
p1t_nf/h,
but alfo
in
tne
ge–
n ral T
on_gue, fpoken by
the
lncM
at
Couo,
whi
h
is
dllferent
from that ufed
in
Tumpi~;
for
as
~
e have faid at the beginning, the Language of
Cou•
is more refi–
ned, in refi eB:
ofall
other
l ndian.1,
wbofe
Language
is
barbarous and corrupt. And
moreover thi Interpreter had learn
d
his
Spanifh
of himfelf, without
Rule,
and
fome
ords onely whi
h
he had gotten u amoogfl:
the
ouldiers, and lewd Peo–
ple,
fu'h
a zounds and
dammee,
and the
like ; and
be
ides he was but a
Servant
t0
the
Spam-ard.t,
and le ned onely to fpeak like the
gro
and though
he
had
been baptifed,
yet
he \ as jgoorant of
all
the Prin ·pl
of eligion, having
ne~
ch r kno ,·ledge of Chri(t our Lord, nor of the Apofrl Creed.
Thi \Vas all
the
Edm::a.rion and
Lea_ming
which our
firfi
Intterpreter had
in
Pe–
ru,
and accordingly
the
Tranflations
he
made
om
of
panijh
were all imperfe ,
and fa concr ry [enfe; not that he made his
rnHrak
olumarily
£-om mall e, but
fi
m ·
gnorance,
fi
eaking,
lik
a
rrot,
things tb
h did n
underiland;
a
fo
ample
\Yhen
he was to de lare, and explain the nature
of
Ebe
Trinicy, as th
o
' a three, and yet one, he would fay, God was three au o
, that·
~
ur
tl
hich a pear
by
their
Jk1J?us
w
hi h
i
their
nots ufc d '
rh
uotrey of
C
rffi -
m c
\
re thefe Affu·
ailed ; and indeed he
W<P.)
o1l:lch
to
bl
me~
if\
e confr
der, that in the
Peruvian
Language they ha e no word to e
re<S the
Trieiry,
the
Holy
hoft, aith,
race, the
hurch, the acramen , and other\ ord of che
]ike Myfteries ; for\\ hich reafon the
paniard.t,
who frudy that Language in our
times and endeavour to e...
pre~
their m) fl:ical
otion ., are for ed co coin
new
\'\'Ord mofl: accommodated to the ·eaGn
of
this people, and
to
the manner of
E.x–
preffi n of the moft: intelligent
I11dians,
who ha
ing
underfiood {( mething of rhe
S1a11ifh
anguage and Leaming, ha e
f
rhemfel es framed new
ord co fupp }'
the defe
f
their pee h, ' here } the
reachers are nm able co
expre~ a~)'
thing in
onfor
1iry
co che underfi
nding
of their
Audicory.
e have upon d1-
r oc afion gi en feveral Inllan
of rhe Barrennef5 and
efe
of che
Peru
1
»
ngua e · and therefc re we ought n
t
t
lay the fole blame on our
firfi
I~rer-
r
ter·
fl
r
n in thefe ur
y ,
''hi h re
t\~
ency nine
e
f
mce that ume
there are almofi a many
gro~
mi(b.k ma e by our prefent Interpreters, as' ere
1
Plilippilbo,
\'ho nev r omTer[e wirh the
p:muml.t
in ocher
Langu
ge c:
hj
" n.
In
01orr,
I
fi ,
chat
I
n \
'" kne v an
Indi m
w
o
fi
ake good
p.t
•
u