684 / 1070
Royal Commentaries.
BooK
111.
Jndies,
a Grant was made to poffe!s and enjoy che Lands rhey had ga.ined ·for cwo
Lives , that is, for tbeir own, 'and the life of
cl,eir
eldefi Son, and to che
Daughcer, in caíe a Son íhould be wanring.
Afcerwards a Command was given,
That
every one fhould marry, upon
fup·
poficion, thac men being married would defüe uo be quiet, and apply chemíelves
to cultivare and improve their Lands, and not be rnuninous and deíirous of
No–
velties; and u¡;ion this Coníideratton , amd for che encouragement of Marriage,
it
was ordained, chac che Wife for wam of Children íhnuld enter into che poffeffi.
on, and enjoy it for her Lire. The reaíon of che lecond
Law
or Confiiturion ,
exempting che
JndianJ
from payn,ent of Taxes or· Impolicions was grounded on
á fuggefüon- ~hac che
SpaniardJ
paid or allowed noching to the
lndian,
for their
pains or labour in their Cervices: perhaps chis might be parc!cularly true in relati.
on to fome
Spaniards
of evil confciences and tyrani,ical difµohtions; bur as to the
generalicy, ic could not be made good; for ch:ic many
lnaiam
were entercained
in che fervice of che
Spa:oiard1,
andas Day-labourers hired themfelves out
to
hew
or
faw
cimber, receivíng their wages and hire for their labours: :ind rherefore
to
ordain chat che
lndiam
íhould not
be
charged wich labours or employed in work,
was ro cur off cheir bread and their ga,in: aind rherefore it had been much more
policical to have made a
la,w
íeverely to puni!h chofe who withheld payment
from che
lndians
,
afrer they hld done their fervice aod labour which deferved
it.
As to chac Law, which forbids che
l ndians
co
be
com,.ielled
to
work in che Mines,
I
have noching to íay, bue onely
t0
referr my felf to che prefent pr:iétice, which
is now uíed in chis year
1611.
when
by
order of che Govemmenc, che
lndian1
are
compelled to labour in che Silver Mines of che M Juntain of
Poto[ci,
and in the
~
Mines of Qg_ick-íilver which arife in che Province of
Hu,mc1t:
in which, if che
Jndianr
were noc employed, the quanticies of Gold ~nd Silver which
are yearly
imporced frorn chis Empire into
Spain
would greatly fax1.
As ro that particular Law which impoíes a Tribme or Qgic-rent paiable
by
che
Tenant
to
che Lord ofche Manor, it was a macter
fo
well \íl:ablifhed, thac it was
received with general applauíe at that time when Preftdenc
Pedro de la Garca
pro–
portioned che Taxin
Peru,
of which I was rny íelf an eye-wirnefs: bue as to
che
exempcioa of
lndians
from períonal fervice, they gave no good information,
nor did they know bow
to
make íuch a roporc as rnighc be proper in thac cafe.
For die matter fiood rhus : Every Advencurer that was an Iohabitant had a cer–
tain nurnber of
lndian1
alloccedco him in lieu of pareof his Tribute, for maince.
nance.oíhis houíe;
fo
chac everY. Lord, b~(ides his principal Manfion dwelling
had fome ímall Coccages of abom fourcy or hfry in number, or ftxry ar che moft,
fer
our to him, obliged to períon:il Services; char is co íay, to províde his houfe
with Wood, Water, and Hayor
Gra[s
for hisSt:ib1es, for ac chat time, they had
no Scraw; and, beíides chis, chey were obliged
to
no ocher Tribllte or s ~rvice:
and of thisnature my Father was poffeffcd of chree little Villages
in
che Valley
of
Co~co ;
and in che parts adjacent, che
Iahabican.csof
Couo
held divers fuch like
Cottages obliged ro che uíe and fervice ofche Ciry. And wbere it happened our,
chacche loe fell ro aay períon , in places uninhabiced, chey prefencly fent to che
Head-quartersto be íupplied wich
/11Jianú
in pare
.of
che Tribuce dueto them; and
accordingly che fame was granted , and che
Jndinn1
which were allocced to them,
wich grearchearfolnefs and concentmem foHowed and obíerved che impoftcion of
their Maílers:
fo
chac when che Preíidenc
Cefea
carne, and found chis p:micular
poim
fo
equally di[pofed and eftabliíhed, be approved thereof, and made no man~
ner of alceration therein.
.
As coche chird Precept, which retrencbed d,e Bifhops, Monaíleries and
Ho–
fpitals in chofe large proporrions of Cervices which former Governours had be–
fto wed upon chem, over
Jndi((m:
It íee1:ned neicher injurious nor unreafonable
wholly ro cake rhemaway; for chat the Incemion of rhe Governours was noc to
grane dv:m for..a longer time than chey were ímpowred by hisMajefiies Commif–
íion, which was only for two Uves, which being expired, theír right ceafed; and
herein Monaíl:eries, Biíhopricks ancl Hoípitals, rhough of perpetua! durance,
yec
co\1!d not pretend to a grearer privilege rhan che Advenrnrers and Conquerours of
chofe Empires. The remaining pare of chis third and fourch Ordinance we íhall
declare hereafter, in che place where we give a relation of che Complaints which
chofe made who believed chemfelves injured and damnifyed chereby.
CHAP.