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R.oyal Commentaries•
.
BooK
VIL
CH A P. VII.
Of their NoEiurnal Feafl ce!ehrat'ed at Night for puri[Jing
their City from fick.,ne/fes, and other calamities.
T
HE
Nighc following they °Iighced greac Torches ofScraw,
fo
clofe and
hard
. cwill:ed together, that they were long i()--Ourning, and were not unlike our
Wifps of oiled Straw ; onely they were rruttfe round, and about the bigneís of a
Foot-ball, called by them
Pancuncu
;
to each end of thefe, they tied a cord of a–
bouc a
Y
ard
i,n
length, with which chey ran through
che
Screets, cafüng them
round untill they carne wichout the Cicy, fuppofing that by help of thefe
fires,
they expelled che noélurnal evils from their Ciry : For as th~ evils ofche day were
droven out by the Lances,
fo
che evils of che nighc were carried out by che Tor–
ches ;.
which being quenched wirhouc che Cicy in a brook or current of water in–
to which they were chrown, were believed to carry wich them down cheir fireams
ali due
fickneífes and evils of chei.r Cicy ; fo thac
if
ac any time an.
Indian,
ofwhac
Age foever, íhould happen
co
fee one of thefe wifps of Scraw, lodged by any ac–
ddent or íl:oppage on che banks of che River, he prefently Aed from ic, fearing
to
be feized by forne of chofe evils, which were newly expelled and baniíhed
che
City.
The Wars being ended, and the Cicy cleanfed and purified of ali its evils and
difea[es, greac joy and mirth was heard in ali cheir dwellings, noc onely in publick,
but in every privaré family, which contintJed for the
firfi:
quarcer of the Moon;
during which ,time, they returned cbanks to che Sun for cleaníing and freeing chem
:from ali their evils .; and in demonftration of fuch chankfulnefs, chey facrificed
Lambs and Sh~p
to
him ; che bloud and entrails of which chey hume in che fire ;
but che fleíh chey roaíl:ed in che common Markec,place, and íhared it amongft
thofe who were prefenc ac the Feíl:ival.
I remember, when I was youog, that I
faw
fome pare of thefe ceremonies p€r.J
formed; •and chac a certain
Inca
fallied out with his Lance, noc.from che
Caíl:le,
for chacwas chen deíl:royed,;bue from aHoufe belonging
to
one ofche Inc;a1,,which
was-füuated on che fide of thac Hill, where che Caíl:le was formerly bwlt, called
Col/.campata:
l
faw
alfo che four
Indian1
run with their Lances, and che common
people íhake their Cloachs, with all the other vile and fooliíh praétices, as eating
their Bread called
Cancu,
and burning che Torches called
Pancunrn :
For my pare,
I had noc che curioíicy to
lit
up fo late ac night, as to be prefeot ac tbeir noéturnal
Feíl:ival: Howfoever, I remember, that I
faw
one of their
Pancuncm
lodged in che
fiream which runs through the Market-place, and near to che Houfe of iny School–
fellow
rohn de Cel!orico,
I.remember
to
have feen many
Indian
Boys to have
run
fi:em -it; bue I bei0g aChild of íix or feven years old, and nor Catechifed in their
Religion, nor knowing the caufe, remained unconcerned ac che bundle of Scraw,
not thinking it fo terrible asdid the
Indian1.
·
ThisTorch we now fpeak of, was tbrown inco che füeam which runs chrough
the Cicy, and carried abroad according to the ancient infiitution; for che Feaíl:
was not now obferved wich that íl:riétnefs and veneration, ~s it was in che times
of theír Kings; for beginning now to become obfolete, ic was rather performed
in remembrance of cheir ancient cuíl:oms, chao out ofan opinion of any effe<fr or
virtue of fuch a praétice; for chere remained íl:ill fome old fuperíl:icious fellows~
wijo r~fufed Baptifi.n, and obíl:inately ad~ered to cheir ancienc Gentilifm.
In
times 6fthe
Inw
theTorches were carried outbf che City, and chere caíl: into che
River: che water with which chey wafhed their bodies, though it were brought
from other íl:reams, was yec ro be poured into the River which runsfrom che City,
that
fo
the evils which it waíhed, mighc be carried far diíl:am, andby force of che
rnrrenc be lodged in che Sea, Aswe have before mentiqned.
There