562 / 1060
534
/
Royal
Commentaries.
' BooK
II.
''
'/ohn
de
Herrada,
who were left in
Peru
for Agents to
Almagro,
paffed that
way
cc
with their people, and in like manner endured much extremity both by hunger
'' and cold ; for the paffage is long, and of at leall: five or
fU<
days continuance
" with hard travel; during whidi time they wanted Provifions very much
be~
'' caufe the
Jndiani,
'
hich carried them, were frozen to death : And
yet'
they
" pafied at a better feafon than did
Almagro,
the Snows not being
fo
deep, nor
«
the cold
fo
intenfe ; howfoever they fuffered much, and many died : Their
" chief relief and remedy againft Hunger they received from the Flefh of thofe
" Horfes , which being frozen were conferved from corruption. But
Almagro
'' (as is faid) returned not by this way of the Mountain by which he came,
out
" by the Plains which run along by the Sea..coafi, where the Countrey
is
de•
" fare
and uninhabited from
At1tcama,
which
is
the moft remote people of
Peru,
" uncill you come to
Copayapu,
which
is
eighty Leagues diftant from thence, and
'' in
the way there are certain Pools of fiagnated, or Handing Waters, which do
'' not run: For which reafon, and becaufe they are not drawn, they ftink, and
" are corrupted, and are about fix or feven Leagues difiant one from the other;
" wherefore for better Accommodation of the whole Army,
Almagzo
ordered,
" that the Horfe fhould lead the Van, and be the firft to pafS the Defart
in
finall
'' Parties of five and
fo{
in a Company ;
fo
that the Wells being drawn by the
" firfi, the Waters became fweet and wholfome for the ufe of thofe
that
follow–
" ed , and were again filled with a new fupply of Water
f
ufficient for a
finall
'' Company, by which means the whQle Army paffed without much inconveoi–
,, ence; but
Almagro
himfelf, to avoid the Defart embarked on a
fmall
VeffeJ,
" which was brought for him by
Noguerol de Vlloa,
one of his Captains, who was
" Son of the
Alcayde,
or chief Confiab]e of
Sim11nca1,
whom the Bi!hop of
Cammi
'' put to death.
Geronimo de
Alderete,
who many years after was Governour of
''
Chile,
obferving when he was
at
Copayapu,
that the pa!Iage over the Mountains
cc
was clear of Snow, refolved to pafs that way; and having many others
in
his
" company, they made fearch for the Remains and Relicks of that great Morta–
" lity which happened to thofe who paffed with
Almagro
;
and there they found a
"
Negro
ftanding againft a Rock on his feet bolt upright, as alfo a Horfe on his
" feet, as ifit had been a Figure
fee
up ofStraw, and
theN~ro
holding the Reins
" in his hands, which were rotten, the skin and flefh being fallen from Che bones;
" and this was five or fix years after that
Paldivia
had been Govemour there,
'' whom
Alderete
fucceeded. And chus far are the Words of that ancient Con–
querour, who made Marginal Notes on the Hifiory of
Gomara,
and
farther
ex~
prelfes himfelf
in
the following Chapter.
CH A· P.
J