4000003871

B001<

IX.

Raya!

Commentaries.

CH.

A P. XXI.

-Of C0nie$; and Dogs of Game.

OR had they Wild, or Tame Rabbets, as we have in·

Spain,

for they have

been brought thither ftnée I deparred from

Peru :

The firíl: that brol!lghc

tbem t@

Cou:o,

was one

the Clergy called

Añdrew Lope::,,

borh in t-he

Eftremadttra,

but

what V.illage or Town I kmow.not, This Ptieíl: btdughc over a Buck

áhd

a Déle

a Cage, and in paffing over a frream; which is about fíixteen Leagues

diíl:ant from

Co~oo,

and runs tbrough the Councrey of

Chinchápuyu,

where che E–

ftate of my

Lotd

and Father

Gnrfilaj[o de la Vega

lyes; it happened out, that wbHíl:

the

Jndian

which carried rhem; had fer clown the Cage to reíl: l:iimfelf; aód eat a

bit of bread, that th~ Doe efcaped out through a bote of the Cage, where one of

the Rods was broken, and ran out amongíl: the Rocks and Mountains, and amongíl:

the WiUows and Ol4ers whkh grow by che banks of tfue River ; ,the Doe being

tben big with Young, brough~ forth a great many, which being <c{?nferved after–

wards by the care of the

Jndians,

have increafed to. that degree, that tbey have

made aWarren, and now cover the ground with their Numbers. From th~nce

they nave ftocked other Grounds in rnany parts ~- the Land being ,barren,~nd the

Grafs íhort, chey have thriven fo well, as

become of a larger fize than oui:s ; as

have alfo other Conies which have been brought frorn

Spain

irtto óther parts.

lt was the furtune ofthat Coney

get loofe in

tenltierate Climate, which was

neither

ovet

hot, n.-or very cold; bue as they fpread farther up the River, the CouQ–

trey grows cooler, untill at length tbey c0me tó'places of perpetual Snóws :· Such

as took their downwards as tbe frream runs, tbofe were·fobje?1; to greater heacs,

untill they carne to the River

Apurimac,

which is the hotteíl: Cliq1áte of ali

eru.

This Story of the Conies was told me by án

Jndian

of my Co,mtrey, who know–

ing

that I was writing tbe Hi.ftory of

Pene,

gave me this inforrnacion ; for the

truth of which, I refer my felf to the banks of tbat River; which

they be

well íl:ocked with Conies, as he relates, it may ferve for an-undeniable proof.

tbe Kingdom of

fl.t}itu

there are Conies like thqfe in

Spain,

onely they are lefs,

and of a darker colollr, having a black íl:reak along the top oftheir backs, in eve-

, ry thing elfe tbey are like the Rabbets we have in

Spain :

they

have.no

fiares, nor ,

do1

know whether ~bey have brought any thirher as yet. .

The Dogs of game; or of good rafe, fuch as we have formerly mentioned,

were not in

Pm,,

untill the

Spaniards

brought tbem thither. Maíl:iffi were rhe

faíl .

of any tranfported to thofe parts, by reafon, that having no Wolves, nor other

beafis of prey which might hurt their Catre!, they had no need of fuch Dogs for

tbeir defence, or guard. Howfoever, when tbey were come chither, füch as weú~·

Maílers of great Flocks,and Hetds, would not want, or be withouc them, not

thac chey had any need, or occafion for tbem; but onely becaufe chey would have

their Flocks

a.nd

Herds be like rhofe in

Spain:

And

paffionately was their fancy

at rhebeginning inclined hereumo, that in every thing chey affeél:ed rhe Manners

and Cuftoms of

Spain ;

for which reafon, and not for any need, a

Spaniard

carried

a Maíl:iffWhelp, rhat was not above a Momh anda half old, in a Waller, which

he hanged at bis Saddle-bow, frorn

G_ou o

Los Reyes,

which is a hundred a'nd

twenty Leagues through a tnounrainous and craggy Counrrey, being .every day

rroubled

find Milk for tbis Whelp

the which I

faw,

and can teíl:ifie, having

been a Companion wirh rhat

Spaniard

in' the Journey ; who told me, rhat he car–

ried rhat VV0elp for a prefent ro his -Father-in-law, who was a _Grafi~r, being Ma–

fier of great Flocks of Catre!, and lived fifty or fixty Leagues on this fide of

Ciu–

daade los Reyes)

by whom he woúld be eíl:eemed as a Jewel of mighry value. Thefe

and grearer pains have tbe

Spaniards

taken at the beginnir.g ro prornre fuch Crea–

tures as are u{e·d in

Spain,

which aftetwards they have negleél:ecl and conferved in

fürle

eíleem,

C H A P.