4000003871

BooJ{ I.

Royal Commentaries.

readily, leíl: they fhonld doe

him

fome hure, faid

Beru,

which was

bis

own proper

name, and rhen added

Pelu

;

which was as much as to fay, if you ask me_my

name, I am called

Beru ;

but if you ask me of the place, where I was,

Pe/u;

for that íignifies a River in the

Jndian

language: from which time, which was

the year

the

Spaniards

have ever called this great and rich Countrey by the

name of

Pm,

;

other Hiíl:orfans corrupting the letters, call ic

Piru,

iníl:ead of

J.>m, :

and this place, where this

Jndian

was furprized, we may cercainly denote as the

ut–

moíl: border of that Dominion which was under che Jurifdiél:ion and Conqueíl: of

chofe Kings, which were called

lncM;

and which was ever after named

Peru

from

thac very place which is over-againíl:

~ita

Charw,

and is the principal Domi–

nion of che

JncM,

containing 700 Leagues in length ; although cl-ieir Empire did

reach as far as

Chile,

which contains

>ºº

Leagues more, and is anocher moíl: rich

and fertile Kingdom.

C HA P.

III.

The Defcription of

Peru,

with the Story of

Peter Serrano.

H E four limits and borders of thac Empire which che

Inca;

poífeffed before

the

Spaniards

invaded them, were chefe. To the North it was bounded

with che River

Ancarmaya,

which runs between the Confines of

~it//1

and

Pajfau,

and fignifies in the common language of

Peru,

che

Az:.ure

River, being íicuated al–

·moíl: perpendicularly under che Equinoél:ial line :

che South its limics are Con–

fined

che River

Mau!i,

which runs Eaíl: and Weíl chrough che Kingdom of

Chi!i,

before it comes

che

Arauco,,

which is

fº

degt"ee~

South laticude from

the Equinoél:ial. The dillance between che[e two Rivers they accounc little

le[s

than ·1300 Leagues by Land. That which is properly called

Peru,

contains 75'º

Leagues in lengch, reaching from the River

Ancarmaya

to che

ChichM,

which

the

fartbermoíl: Province of the

CharcM,

and !yes North and South, as alfo doch chat

which

called che Kingdom of

Chilo,

which contains abouc

s-o

Leagues in length,

reckoning from che fartheíl: p,irt of the Province

Chicha1

to the River

Mau!i.

To the Eaíl: it

bordered

chac Mouncain which is inacceffible formen, beafü;

or fowls, called che

Cordillera,

becau[e ic is always covered with Snow, ancl runs

from Sr.

Marta

the Straits of

Magellan,

which the

India~,

call

Ritirgu,

and is as

muchas the Councrey of Snow. To the Weíl: it hath che Sea of

Zur

for ics

Confines, running all along the coaíl; to the Cape

Paffeu,

which is under the Equi–

noél:ial, and excends to che

Mau!i,

which

alfo

falls into the Sea of

Zur;

from che

Eaíl: to che Weft che Kingdom is eíl:eemed bue narrow, the broadeíl: place of

being from che Province

Mugupapa

to che City

Trugillo,

which is füuaced on rhe

Sea-coaíl:, and contains 12.0 Leagues

breadch, beíng in che narroweíl: place,

which is from the Port

Arica

to che Province called

Larico.ffa,

abour the

[pace

Leagues. Thefe are che four bounds of thac Dominion which che

IncM

poífef,.

fed, the Hiíl:ory of which we intend,

divine affiíl:ence, for to write. But be-

.fore we proceed forward, ic will be requiíire to recoum the $cory of

Peter Serrano,

for which we have place fufficient in chis íhorc Chapter.

Peter Serrano

efcaped from íhipwreck by fwimrning to that deferc Iíland, which

froín him received ics name, being, as he reported, about cwo Leagues

com–

pafs, and for

much it is laid down, in rhe Waggoner, which pricks chree little

Iíiands

the Carc, wirh divers íhallow places abouc chem ; fo

th1t

all Ships keep·

ac a dif!ance from chem avoiding them wich all poffible care and circum–

fpeél:ion.

le was

Peter Serrano's

misfortune

be loíl: upon chefe places, and to fave h.is

life

on chis di[confolace Hland, where was neicher water, nor wood, nor grafs, nor

any ching for fupporc of h

umane

life, at leaíl: noc for maincenance of him for fo

long a time, as uncill fome

.ip paffing by mighc redeem him from periíhing

hunger and thiríl:, which languifhing manner of deach is much more miferable,

·chan

a fpeedy fuffocation in che wacers.

With

the fad choughts hereof he

paífed

•