353 / 1070
BooK
VIII.
,
Royal Commentaries.
In
the time of the Vice-king, called
Blafco N,mnn Pela ,
in cheyear
1544.
and
4S'·
amongíl: other Contagions ac that time in
Peru,
rhere was a Múrrain amongít
this
fort
of C:attel, which che
Indians
called
Carache,
b~ing a certain Mange, or
_. Scab, a Difeafe never known before in chofe pares; ,it ~ook chem firíl:
in
rhe
Legs and Ventricle, and chen diffofed it felf over ali che Body, rifing in·Bunches
three or four fingers high; which fomecimi buríl: with Marcer and Blorid and
iífue~ in that abundance, thac che poor Creatur,e died in two or _chr~e di\ys?T!üs
Murrain was fo contagi.ous, to che great ,trouble and affliél:ion boch of che
Spa–
niards
and che
Jndiam,
cbat two_ thirds of the_ greater and le_fier <;:arce! dyed, 66th
Paco
and
Huanacu;
and farther 1t extended
1c
fe]f
to
che wild
Huanacu
and
Vicarz–
na,
chough ir wa~ not
fo
mortál among{l: them, becaufe they belonged to colder
Councries, and did ·noc herd in füch droves as che ~ame Cartel. .This Murrairi
alfo extended it felf to che very Fo~es, arid affeéted them in fo cruel
a
I1fañrn~r;
that as I remember in che Year
1548.
when
Gonfalo Pifarro.was
¡¡t
Couo,,
and viG-,
torious afrer che .Ba.ccel of
Huarin¡1,
I
faw a gteac many Fo;x¿s which were fi;ized
wich this Plague come .into che City by nighc; and in che móniing.weré found
dead in che Streecs, having great boils oi;i their Backs, from Head to Tail, which
were caufed by .chis Plague amongíl: Beaíls.
1
The
Indians,
who were ,very fuper–
fiitious ¡n macters of chis nature, 'did 'from hence prognofücate che Deach of
Pi–
f.arro,
wpich accordingly enfüed in a fhorr time afterwards. When chis Murrain
firíl: began amongíl: che Cartel they applied many Remedies, which ferved racher
ro
encreafe than aba~e che evil; amongíl: which one was to kill or bury alive one of
the kind which was infeéted, as
Ace.fta
memions in his 4th Book; but fn regard
the evil encreafed fo
faff,
that neither che
Indians
nor
Spaniards
knew
in
what manner
to
give a íl:op to it; they,at length qiade a tria! how it migh't: be done by fue, or
cauterizing; then they cried
to
cure it by preparations of Mercury, and Sulphur,
and Hogs-greafe, but.ali proved too violene Remedies, fo thac thé Camil dyed
the· more fpeedily by -chem. At length, c1fter many experimeriis ina'd~, they'
found none better than to anoint the pares where the Scab arofe wirh Hogs-greafe,'
melced and warm , taking greac care to obferve if che Sci;anches began on their
Legs, and then to anoint chem, for che Mur-rain feized thém :firff there, before
it
fpread it felf into che upper pares. This was che be(l: 1'emedy they found, yec fer–
ved for litcle untill che evil inB,uences were over, whicli were the caufos ofit. And
by reafon of the great benefit, which they found by chis Greafe: they very much
eíl:éémed ofHogs, though for che numbérs of them they were cheap,. ánd yielded,
no great price, It is obfervable that this general Plague upon ahnoíl:
ail
forts
of
Cattel, did not yec rouch che wilder Animáis, fuch
as
Stags, and Fallow-Deer ,
becaufe perhaps rhey were of another temper.
I
remember that in
Coz.co,they_
made choice
of
St.
Antonio
for cheir Saint and Proteél:our againíl: this Murrain,..for
which cauf~ lhey folemnize a Fefüval to him every year.
•.
,
Though chis
fon
ofCartel be great and large, (as we have faid) and che Jour–
nies long which chey travell, yec they put their Maíl:ers to no charge, either
iri
their Mear, or Shoeing, or Stable, nor in their Pack-faddles, or Gir'cs, or Crup–
pers, or Scays, or other UcenG!s which our Carriers ufe; for when they come to
the end oftheir days journey, they onely throw off their burthen, and fend ,chem
to feed on the Grafs which che Land affords; being at no charge, either ofStraw
oii
Corn, though chey would gladly eat Corn, if their Maíl:ers would be
fo
kind
as
to
beíl:ow
it
upc~m them. Then as
to
their fhoeing there is no need of ir, for be–
ftdes that chey are cloven footed, they have a kind of a éallous,· or fpungy rnat~
ter on their Feet, wichom
a
Hoof. 'fhen for their Pack-faddles chey have no
need of chem, becaufe they bave fo much wool ori their Backs as ferves in che'
place ofa Saddle, and keeps che'bunhen faíl: and clofe, which che Maíl:ers of cheni
cake careto !acle in fuch manner, as chat
it
may lie even, and weU poifed, and
not touch
fo
far as
to
gaul che Withers
i
nor have chey need of a Surcingle which
our Carriers ufe, foí· che Beaíl: wearing no Pack-faddle, ali Gires or Cords rnay
rub off the Fle/h; howfoever many of rhem travellin~ a Drove were tied oné
to
che other, having
20
or
2
5
beaíl:s mnning loofe, l'"o as
~
eaíe and ch:mge
;he Burchens ·of chofe which were tired. The Merchants in tfav~!1ing carried
their Tenes with them, which they pitched in díe Fields,
w
herefoever they founq
it conveniem
to
lodge and r'epofe; and th€re unloaded cheir Merchandize ;
fo
thac
they never emred intoVillages or Towns, becauíe too much time andfabol'ft .would
be loft
to'
put their Catee)
to
Graís, and then
tó
go
and
fetch them
up:
In cheir
-
V
v
Journey