600 / 1070
Royal
Commentaries.
ble)
fo
that the people which we~~ fen~ thit~er fuílainedf. much..aiffip.Jlty and
handíhip; for the Moµn~ains were 11'lc:red1bly ~1gh, and covered w1t~ 'lofty trees,
of fuch a forf of barcl, Ti~ber, as w~uld not y1eld tQ rh~Hatchet; and the Buíhes
fo
thick and clofe, that tñ~y w~re hke a,Wa!!,. t~at ne1ther
Man
or
Beaft coutd
pafs tbrough them ; and ~he ~ams were
fo
rnµfbnt, and made fucb.
a
_perpetua!,
Deluge, than when rhey mtended
w
have
b.urnt
~hem, tfle fire
was
'e~mguiíhed,
·aFJd would not cake.
At fü,íl: :\·hen ct1e
Spanif!rds
entred
upcm
~hat Conquefi
1
they expeéted to have
found many
lndian-s
within- th: Cbuhtrey ; and
fo
paífe~> as
welY
ás the~ were
able, orenipg the. way_s
~y
forE:e of
Am¡s- ¡¡_-0d_
tabow·, nfin~ and ,~efrending
by·
fhe Cnanels which were made hy W'ª.tei:s•ta\hng from rhe-Moontaim And with,
thefe Difficulries they' proe~~ed for,
ma~x,
days, e~ough
!1,
ey wete fufficiem_ly in–
formed by rhe
l'ndian,,,
whorn they orougHt oue of
Peru
to-ferve thern, that 1t
was
ali
labour \oft,Í:hat r1'iere we/e·no propl~
in
many Leagues diíl:ant frorn thofe parrs,
tJ:iac che Regicm beiog unini'!abirable, was Aba~doned, ~ -all people, and never
planted by che
Pt1can
Kin~s :•Howf~eve:, t1'if;
!famard,
wóuld. not hearken to
rhern,
efieerniog it a_ difreputat1on
ro
~heir ?t_Rer~nt:é ~o remrn; bark ro
rhe
Counrrey
of,
their Cornpamoo~, Whernfore peFf'ifü·Fl~
11;1
chis. refQ!m1on to proceed, rhey tra–
vel•led at leaíl a hundred Leagues, bein$:_redu(!ed
to
llich
á
wanc of ali Proviíions>
,hat d1ey were fo_ree1 to @at ~erbs and-~00rs, Toads, Serpents? and other Infe&,
whid,, as cl)e-y faid,
!º
that t,trne of Famme, bad as good 'a relliíl;i as Hares or
Co-
1úes ; aod\
~s
ehey re~rt~ the-
grea-1!
Serpents were much better Meat than che
fma•ller Soakes. At length, afeer a l<!>ng, and tedious Journey, in which they had
no profpeét of a beuer condition,
but
that
íil:ill
thelr Famirre and Hardíhips en–
creafed, che Officers of the Arrny, aod,of the King's Treafure, wenc to the
Cap–
raio, :rnd rold him , That íince they had learned by_ experience, char rhe Hard–
íhips of rhat difcbvery
v.
ere not longer
to
be fuftamed
1
for that having now
waodred far above five Monchs wichin thofe Mouncains, rhey had not feen
fo
much as ene
Jndi-an
to conquer, nor an Acre of Lar_id
to
cultivare, but had onely
mee wich Moumains, and Ri\'ers, aod Lakes, and Brooks, aod a perpetua! Deluoe
of Rain ; wherefore they. c.0ncei-ved ic bem~i; to
coofu.lthis own, and rhe fafety
~f
his people by a retw-ru,
l'cN:her
than.out of an
~fünat~humour
to
throw away
che Lives of his people by Famioe, and orher Hardlllips. To which che Cap–
tain made anf\~ er, That he had many days paft obferved and cooíidered ali chofe
Difficulcies,which they la,id 0efore
Airn
1.
ancl,
that abouc che time
of
cwo Momhs
, a-fter rhey nad enn·ed ,vithin cho~ Mountains, he had conceived fome thoughts
of
rnaking
a muro; bu.econúdenng thac fuch
a
rerreat would ha1,1e been di(ho–
nourable
to
them, and to himfelf, 11e had perfüted in chis Emerprife unrill chis
\leay rime
1
aod
ílill
mliíl coorioue t© increao, and importune chem
co
rake cou–
rage and proceed forward, fo thac cheir Companions, who are emulous of cheir
great undercakings, mighc nor have occafion to revile chem wich fcorn, and bid
rhem ro begone
to
rheir Riches, and delicious Dwellings of
Peru,
Wherefore he
-again requeíled and
cqnjured chem not now to relinquifh cheir defign, or
curn
their backs,ro a work
whif:h.cheyhacla\mQíl: overrnme
1,
for
che more danger
rhe
mpre hooour ; and
ú
n~e Fame and
G1ory,
is rhe rewar<l' of Viél:ory,, rhey ffi~ufü
r:reís
f;or_warp 1\ke_ goodiSoulcliers
to
ol1>rain
it,
_ac l~aft,PerGíl:
fo
far in the ¡¡,rofecu-'
uon
oP
1c, unt1H 1t appeai;ed defperaw, an0 dnve 1t
[o
far, as thac their Adverfa–
ries and:evi\lTongues tpjgnt l'lave noehing
to
objeél: ag¡ijnfr tbern
1
far which rhey
wouki,hav~ fufficieot fubj~et agd' c~u!'e, in. cafe t-he}I íhoulcl
fo
foon renurrn·wicb
rheir.
ot¡{ipeís
uneffeéted
1,
in the. mean
time
be could,n©t
bur
have a fenfe and
feeliog
oP
tPieir I!.abours and~Harclíl\igs,. more rhan of
bis_
O\rn ;
howfoev{lr íirnce
rbey·
faw
chat
h@
did' n0t flinch, noi: recrear a {l;ep backward, he defired d{em co
follo."'.·
him, who :,vas.cheir ~apcair_i, ,being thereupro obliged as Cwaliers, goodi
Sould1ers and
Spam-ards.
Wirh
wl\idi
good wordsJ. andl,l)J'eflin~ inílances bieing,
overcorr¡e, they coml?lied with
füs
defires , and grocee.ded'orlier. tbree
tvfomfus
in their difcovery•:
As
their
J
ourneY, lengchned,
fo
Sicknefs, increafed ; far che·
bodies of
Men.
not beihg aBle ro füftain
fudí
Hardíbips,, many, as well
Jnaians
as
S'paniards,
fell' fick and died·, more of M\mger, thao ofany orher Diílemper
'Flius ~eing rhar their Men,
~11
fick, atld,died
1
e\lfü~
daY,,
fo
tbat rhey,were no~.
able ro proceed forward, tHey-refolved'by comrnon confent
to
return, yer noc b;¡
rhe fame way ; bue calHowa compaís
rn
d:ie Eaíl:ward., rhey
carne
abcmt bY,
che–
Soud\, rhac- far cheir berrer farisfaél:ion they mighr caRe a rouod; :ind brín'g all
wirhin