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Royal Commentaries.
BooK
VI.
· neral Rules;
for.inthe account_made ~f Men ~nd Women n:iarried, there was
another firin
g annexed to ir, whICh figmfied
W
1dows, and
W
1dowers of fuch an
age; all which accouncs ferved on~ly fo_r one Year.
.
.
Thefe Knots expreífed numbers m their feveral orders; as by umcs, tens, hun–
dreds, thoufands, tens of thoufands, but feldom wenc
fo
far as_ to hundreds of
thoufands. bue in cafe they íhould have had occafton co have anfen to fo great a
number ~o doubc but cheir Language, which is
foil
and·copious, would have
found ,~ords fufficient
to
exprefs thac fum, and che greaceíl: number to which -
Arirhmetick could arrive. Ali which Accounts were made by Knocs on firings;
one underneach the ocher, and knit on a cord, as the knots are on che Girclle of
Sr.
Francis,
At che top ofthe cord che greateíl: number was placed, as che tens ofthoufands, ·
under that fl:ood che thoufands, and laíl: ofall was the place of the units; all which
were placed direltly wich exaltnefs one under che ocher, as our good Accoun-
1
tants, well skilled in the Art of Cyphering, are ufed to fec and place cheir figures.
The
Jndians
who kept the
f2!!.ipm,
or to whofe charge che keeping of Accouncs
was comrnitted, were called
f2!!.ipumayu,
and were efieemed Men of goocl repu–
tation, and chofen for chat Service, on good aífurance and proof of cheir fidelity'
and honefiy ; and chough che ftrnplicity of thofe people in that Age was wich–
out any mixture of malice, and that che íl:riltnefs of che government admirted
no cheats, or frauds on any fcore wharfoever; yec nocwithítanding greac care was
taken to chufe Men tor chis work of approved Abilicy, and of a cried and expe–
rienced Faithfulnefs and Probicy. For indeed Offices were never amongfi chem
chofen for favour, nor bought, or fold, becaufe that Money was noc current a–
rnongfi chem; but
ic
was Vertue and .Merit onely which purcbafed a Truíl: and
Office: And chougb buying and felling was noc known
to
tbem, yec ic was or–
dinary for chem
to
cruck or barrer their provifions
o[
Food one for che other;
but nothing elfe eicher of Garmems, Houfes, or Inhernance.
The
f2.!!_ipucamaym,
or Accouncants, being honeíl: and faichfull , (as
v.
e have
faid) ferved in che nature ofRegifiers, of which time were four ac leaíl: appoinced
for every Lineage, or People, how lircle foever ir were; and in cafe che Councrey
was greac, chey encertained cwency or thirty; for rhough one Accouncanc mighr
have ferved che turn, yet to avoid ali miíl:akes and frauds, they judged
ic
requi–
fice to coníl:itute many in an Office of fuch importance.
CH A P.
IX.
What
it
was that they [et clown and placed in their Accomzts;
and how they underflood them.
A
LL the Tribute that was yearly payable to the
Inca,
was paffed to accounr,
as alfo what every Family, according to their degrees, and qualities, were
to
pay. The people likewife which went to theWar were numbred; and Bilis of
M~rtality ·we~e kept of as man~ as dyed, and were born, or mifcarried by any
amdent; whICh were ail noted m che monchswherein chey happened.
In
íhort,
they ~ot~d every thing thac could fall under Numeration, as how many Battels
or ~kirm1íhes were fought, how many Ambaífadours had been [ene to the
Inca,
and
how many,Anfwers the King had been pleafed to recurn rhereunco. Bue
w~at, che_ fubfiance of thofe Embaffies was, _or what were che parciculars of che
Kmgs D1fcourfe, or whac occurrences paffed mway ofHillory, were too various
to
be expreífed by che barrennefs of their Knots, which ferved onely for numbers,
bue not for words; wherefore ro fupply this defeét they framed certain hifiorical
Hieroglyphicks, which ferved for Monumenrs, in an 'obfcure manner, of whac
.
had