579 / 1070
BooK
II.
Royal
Commentarief.
Many days afcer I h1d wrote this Chapcer, turning over the i éaves of rhe
Book of
Aco.fta,
I
mee with forne thing to this purpo[e, in confirrnation of che
Miracles which our Lord Jefüs Chrift, and his Mother che Virgin
M ary,
Qgeen
of the Angels, had wroughc in the New World, in favoqr of our holy Fairh
and Religion; which when
I
had réad, and found my own Reports confirrned by
his Auchoricy, I cannot exprefs che Joy I cor¡ceived by chis happy concurrence.
For lince che Delivery of cruch is my chiefAim and Deíign,
I
cannoc bue be great–
ly
delighted·when
I
find my Relations cqnfirmed either in parr, or in whole; by
the Auchoricy of other Hiflorians; for I hace che Charaéter of being eicher a
Flatterer, or a fabulous Writer; which
to
avoid, I have thoughc
fü
to
produce·,
the_Words of
Aco.fta
in the z7th Chapter ofhis 7ch Book, which ar~ as followeth.
" When che
Spaniards
were befiege~ in che City of
Co:uo, .
and
fo
clo[ely pref..
"
[ed
and füaitned, chat without che Affiíl:ence of Heaven it was impollible fot
" them· to efcape, I have heard from very credible Perfons, that che
Jndians,
" threw Fire on che Roof of chat Houfe where che
Spaniards
were lo'dged, and
" where now.che Cathedral Church is built; and chough the Covering of che
" Houfe was afort of Thacch, (which they call
Chicho,
or racher
Ychu,)
and chat.
" che Fi!;e was made with.a raíimy kind of burning Wood, yec it took no hold
" on that combufl:ible rnatter; for our Lady, appeating from above, kepc a con–
,, fian~ Guar.d over that place, arid irnrnediate1y extinguiíhed the Fire;
all
which .
" che
Jndians
vi/ibly faw, and remained with afloniíhinenc. All che Relations
" and Hif!ories, which are wrote on chis Subjeét, report for a certain truch, thac
" in divers Battels, wlüch che
Spaniards
'fought in New
Spain,
and in
Peru,
the
''
Jndians
plainly di[covered in tne Air,
a
Cavalier, rnounced on a white Horfe,.
~' with a$wor
d in his Hand, fighting for che
Spaniards;
whence it is, that in all
" pares of che
We.ft-Jndies
greac Devotion and Honour is paid to thac glorious
" Apofile St.
rames;
and at other times
in
feveral difficulc Encounters, che Irnage
" of our Lady hath prefented it felf, from which Chriíl:ians have received inex–
'.' prellible Benefits; and were ali thefe Apparitions and Wonders of Heaven par–
" ticularly defcribed, they would
f
well aVolurne too large for .chis Hiíl:ory,
&c.
'
·_.
(.
'
:- Thus
far
are the Words of
Aco.fta,
who reports, thac almoíl: fourty years afcer
chefe matter~·were_tranfaéted he rnade a Vo age into
Peru,
where he received
fo.
formation of al! dieíe parciculars. And
ing faid thus mucb, we will retum
ªgain to our
SPfiniardr,
who remaining under füch propitious circumflances 0f che
Pivine Providence,_were enabled to become che Mafiers of an hundred
NtW
Worlds.
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547