515 / 1060
· BooK
I.
~oyal
Co1nmentaries.
CH AP.
xtt.
Of the Fait
hf
ulnefs
which
the
Indians
of
Peru
fhewed unto
the
Spaniards
when
ta~n
by
the111 in
the
W4r.
T
HE
Indians
of
Peru
held this Maxime or Principle. That
if
any yielded
himfelf
or having been taken by
a
Spani1trd
in the War , he was thereby
become
his
abf
olute Slave, and efieemed him by whom he was taken to
be
his
Idol and his God, and that he ought to honour and revere him for fuch; and
to
ohey, ferve, and be faithfull to him unto
t~e
death,
~nd
not to deny
~im
_ei–
ther
for the fake of his Countrey, Parents, Wife or Children. Upon thIS
Pnn–
ci
ple they preferred the Wellfare of
a
Spaniard.,
who was their .Mafier, bef<?re
a~l
other confiderations whatfoever, and would
fell
or betray their own
Family,
if
their Mafter required it , and that it were neceifary or conducing to his Service ;
by which means the
Spaniard.r
never wanted Spies, nor Intelligence ofwhatfoever
pa«ed amongfl: the
lndian1,
which was of great ufe to them in the Subjeetion and
Conqueft of
that:
Countrey; for they believed it to be a real duty in them to be
obedient
unto
thofeto whom they
had
yielded themfelves Captives; and therefore
would engage
in
fight on their Mailers fide, againll: their own Counrreymen
and
Relations, as if they were their mortal Enemies: When fome
Spanifh
Troops
in
their March had taken fome
Indian
Captives, and that the Commanders would
fuare them amongft the Souldiers according as every Man wanted
a
Servant, the
Indian
would refufe to acknowledge
any
other for his Maller, than
him
onely to
whom he had yielded himfelf; and when they were told, that it was the Rule
of
War to divide equal !hares to every Souldier , and that he who
was
already pro–
vided, was to permit bis Companion to be equally accommodated: The
Indian
, anfwered, that he would obey on condition, tnat when theChrilHan to whom he
was allotted had taken another Captive, that he might have the liberty to return to
his Mafier to whom he had firft fubmitted; the like Fidelity the Women alfo pro-
.
feifed. Three
1~dians
taken
in
this manner
I
left in the Houfe of my Father, and
Lord
Garfillijfo de la Vega,
one of wbich was called
Alli,
"hich is-as
much
as
to
fay Good; he was taKen in a Bartel, of which there were many in
Collao,
after
the
Indians
had made their general Infurreetion, in one of which this
Alli
fought
like
a very fiout Souldier,
and
having engaged far with fome few Perfons, he took
no care to fave hirnfelf,
untill
he faw
all
his Companions put
to
flight, and hard–
ly purfued by the
Spaniards,
and havin& then little hopes of fafety or refuge,
he
laid
himfelf amongO: the dead, to whicn pofiure he
had
opportunity to compofe
hirnfelf by the darkne!S of the night, and cafiing away his Shirt, he wallowed
in
the bloud of the
Hain,
that
fo
he might feem to be one of them.
. The
Spaniards
returning
from the purfuit unto their Camp
in.
feveral Compa·
mes, three or four of them happened to pa!S that way, where this
Indian
lay coun–
terfeiting the dead Man; and whilfi they vvere vievving the dead, my Lord and
Mafier
Garfilajfo
de
la
Pega
obferved one of them to
p-ant,
and dravv
his
Breath,
vvhereup~m
he vvent near him, and touched him vvith the point of his Spear
to try
if'
he had
fenfe, and vvere living;
fo
foon
as
the
Indian
felt the
prick
h~
immediately fiarted up, and cried for quarter, fearing that there vvas nothing lefs
t~n
Death for
him.
After vvhich he remained
in
the Service of my Father
vvlth that.Fidelity and Subjeetion vvhich vve have already expreffed, being defi:
r<?us to evidence
the
fame on
all
occafions.
He
vvas afcervvards baptized
calling
himfelf
(ohn,
and his Wife
lfahel.
'
BOOK