369 / 1070
BooK
VIH.
.
Royal Commentaries.
niards
found,out the u[é of Qg_ick-íilver ; aod refer the R.eader, to fatisfie his curio–
fity co thac Hifiory of
Acojl-a,
in which he wrices of al! the[e Metals, and particu–
larly
of ch
e Nacure of Quick-íilver.·at large;
'Tis obfervable thacche Mines of che
Mouotain
Poto.Jiwere
firfr
difcovereq by
certaindndians,
who wereServancs
to
Spa–
niards,
cal
led incheir Language
Yanactma ;
who under che feal of friendfhip, and
promife of fecrecy, kept it concealed for fome rime, ,enjoying to chemfelv1rs che
benéfic of che firfi .difco..very ; bue finding che Riches immenfe, anti difficult to be
hiclden, they could nor, or would not, conceal thij intimation thereof from their
,Maíl:ers, who opening the firíl: vein
of
Ore, fouhd paífage
fo
a greater treafure:
345
Ainongíl: chofe
Spaniards,
to whom chis boocy
and
fortunate lot happened,.,there
was one called
Gonfafo Bernal,
who was afrerwárds Steward to
Pedro de Hinojofa;
this Man difcourfmg fome íhort time afcer the,difcovery of rlhis Mine; wich
Diego
Centeno,
a
Gentleman ofQg_alicy, and orher Noble perfons, concerning the rich and
fpreading veios of·chis Mountain, declared it to be his opinion, that in cafe chis
Mine were diggéd, and che Silver melted, wbich it would produc.e, that Silver
would become more common, (and lefs valuabJe than Iron. · 'fhe which aíferciori,
I hav~ feen made goo,d in che ye.ars
1554,
anq1j .5,, ·When iri thij
W-ar
of
Fr{lnci{c'o
Hernandet- Giron,
an IronHorfe-íhoe wasworth .tive :Pieces of Eighr, or fix Ducacs,
and a Shoe for a Mule raced at four Pieces ofEight, and cwo Nails für íhoing va:
-
Iued at a
Tomin,
?r
*
fifty five
Mar,ave1ú,
I have feen a pair of Buskins, or Spacter~,;.
AboJt
t~ri
Jaíhes, fold at thircy fix Ducats; a Q.g_rre
0f
Paper for four D.ucats ; an Ell,of
Paien--
penée.
'tia
Cloth, dyed
in
grane, at fixcy.Ducats; aBd according to this
race, ali
the firíe
Cloths made of
Sigovia
Wool, their Silks, Llnen, and ocher Mercharidifes
of
Spaiti,
were eíl:imated : bue che War was the caufe
'0f
chis déarnefs, becaúfe in the
f
pacé
of
two years, thac it continued, there arrived no Sñips in
Peru
ívith che Oommo'-
diries of
Spain.
Moreover, the great abundance of Silver
which
chofe Mines,yi<i!l-
ded, caufed
it
to be cheap-, and of no eíl:eem ;· that
:t-
Basket of
Ouca
carne to be
worth thircy fix Ducats, and a Buíhel of Wheat valued ae twenty,four or twenty
five Ducacs; ac like rates they fold tlieirMayz, ahd all their commodities forShoes
and Gloaching
;i
and .cheirWine alfo was
fold'
at
exceffive ~rizes, untill (uch time
as it carne to be iqáported
in
greatér quanticies:. 'And
tlioúgh
,chisOóunttey be rich;
and abounding with Gold, Silver, and precious Stones; yet the Natives are the
mofr poor and miferable people in ali' che World:-
.
1
.
• ., l
CH A P.
1
_
XXV. ·;;.,~,;
Of 0!:i~k_,,-fdver
;
ánd how
they
n'zelted theif
Ore
/;efore thej
difcovered that Mineral. ·
,~
W.
E
have in che foregoing
part
of
chis 1-Iül:ory fignified, that che
brean
Kings
had a knowledge of Qiick-íilver, bue were unacquainted with che Na–
ture, or Ufe of ir, and onely admired the livdy and,quick motions of
it
;
howfo–
ever, having obferved fome certain noxious qualities and effeéts it produced , fuch
as fiupefaétions, pa)Ges, and tremblings ofthe Nerves, che Kings, wlrofe chief care
Was the fafety of cheir people, ( for which reafon one of cheir Titleswas,
Lovers
of
rhe
Poor )
did abfolucely forbid their .Subjeéts
to
ufe or meddle wich it; and they
being poífeífed
with
an apprehenGon
of
its noxious qualities, abhorred it
ro
that
degree, as not to think it worchy of their thought or word; fo that they had no
name for Qg_ick-íilver, unlefs chey have coined one for it fince che
Spaniards
in che
year
1
5
67,
madea difcovery of ic ; and
if
they had any before, they had cercain–
ly forgocic, asMenare liable
to
doe, who have no knowledge or praóciceofletcers.
That which che
J
nCtU
u[ed and permitted to cheirSubjeéts, was a forc ofEarth of
a pure Vermilion-colour beyond expreffion , found
in
duíl: within the Mines of
'
Y
y
Quick-