4000003871

BooK

Pacha rurac

Piracocha

Cay-lJinapac

Churafunr¡ui

Camefunr¡ui.

Royal

Commentar.ies:

JI .

Muncli

Fal1:or

:.·. ·

,m:be 8-Bater of

tJJe

[[102lt1

' y· ·

,._

Ñame of

;i<

Viracocha

1racocua

one or their

Ad hoc.munús, .

lpatb comtn!rte~

Godi;,

Te fufficit

anti encbargetJ'

tbí~

prxfecit.

©ffíce unto

t~ee.

With füch trifles as thefe I have enriched ,my poor Hiíl:ory; for whatfoéver I

have

colleéted frol).1

BIM

Valera,

are ali pearls ~nd precious curiofüies, and fue!\

omaments as my Countrey dorh not deíerve; y,rhich ndw, as ~hey repon, in thefe

days

mproves

Poerry ; for chaeche Mongr:ils, or thofé of

'Sp,mifh

and

Indian

bloud have caken a good ftrain in Verfe, ·who[e fübjeét is Divine or Moral, God

· give rhem his grace chac chey may íerve him .in all chings. .

. In

chis imper(eét and grofs rnanner had che

Indians

Peru,

che knowledge of

Sciences, which is noc to be arq-ibuted to theír wanc of nau,ral pares and abilities

ofmind ; for had chey been iníl:ruc1:eq in leccers, cheir q1pacicies are füch a5 mighc

have improved every liccle beginning: Andas the.firíl: Philofophers and Aíl:rolo–

gets delivered the principies of cheir Sciences

their poíl:erity, who ereéted on

thoíe foundations che more lofty buildings ofreafon; fo thefe people were endued

With the like cápaéities, fufficient to advance fuch léárnirig as·defcended

fro1n

their Parents, eípeciaUy we find that they were well diípo[ed to the learning of

that Morality which contained che Cuíloms and Laws of cheir Countrey; and

which

did not onely extend to thoíe rul~ relating

jctllice and aecent co

mp~rt–

menc of one

Subject

to another , but'as

had reference to chat obedience whi.ch

·Subjeéts and

Vaffi.ls

owe to cheir Sovereign, and chofe Miniíl:ers which aét un–

der cheir .command; for thefe being a people who weré indined to live acc;ording

!<fthofe Laws which che

li_ght of

narnr.e diétated; and raéher

tó

doe no évil, than

know well, were more ea!ily made capable of thac Science which w:is direéted

marerial and exteriour óbJe&, than of chat whieh was cbnverfant abour more ab–

ftru[e and imrnaterial notions.

Pedro de Cieca

in che

38th

Chápter of his Book

fpeaking of che

IncM

and their Government, fays, That they aéted

well, and

that cheir Government was

good and political, as might be cornpared to che

\Viíedom of che beíl: frame and Model of Common-wealths in chis1Wórld.

And Father

Mae{fró Acofta,

in che

firfi

Chapter of his

6th

Book, ·rn~kes

diícourfe

in favour of che

JncM;

and the people of

Mexico,

in the[e words ;

. " Having in che preceding diícourfe laid clown che Particulars of that Religion

" ~·hich

ene

Indians

profefs; I defign in the following Treati[e to declare cheir

'' Cuíl:oms and Political Government, for two ends: Firft, that I rnay undeceive

~' che World of that fal[e opinion whicp chey have fraIT)ed concerning chis peo–

" ple, as·being fo brutiíh, and of

little underftanding, as deíerve not the name

" of racional creamres : From which e1wneous conception, many grievous cala–

" rnities have been impofed on them wichout pity or compaffion ; and being e–

" fieerned no orher than beaíl:s, ali that refpeét which is due to humane nacure,

~' or che perfon of Mankind hath been loíl: towards them. Bue chis falfe notionj

'' which none

out

the vain,glorious and confident of themfelves ( who are che

'' cornmon fools of che World ) have encertained, hath beeh füfficiently confu–

" ted by more f@lid and confidering men, who have rnade it cheir bufinefs to tra–

" vel and cortverfe amongíl: them, and to diícover the [ecrets of their Guíl:orns

" and Governmem. To remove which prejudiciál c~nfüre from them; che moff

expedite rneans

will

be to declare che Jµíl:ice and Cufioms which W€re in uíe

" amongíl: them, at that time, when they lived by their own Laws; ,,vich which;

" though there was a great mixture ofBarbarifm, and many things without foun~.

" dation ; yet their Government contained rnany excellenc things, and worchy of

" adrniration, and fuch as may be cornpared wich che beíl: Model oí our Com–

" mon-wealths, and may afford us fufficient evidence of che genius of that people;

" and of that natural readinefs of mind capable

b€ improved to greater and

" higher rnatters. Nor oughé it to

[eem

firange, if fome erroneous fárn:ies havé.

'' intermi,'l{ed with their Cuíl:oms; for even

Plato

and

Lycurgm,

and other excel–

,, lene Legiílatours have been guilty of forne follies, and interwoven fu~erfücions,

and vain rites, with their more fubíl:antial Laws. And indeed in thoíe wi[e

~' Common-wealths of .aome.aod

Athens,

many ridiculous Cu~orns- have,b~en in~

noduced ;