 Part
1 - The Realm of the Incas
Among the
rumors which circulated among the ambitious adventurers of
the New World, one of the most dazzling was that of a rich
empire far to the south, a very El Dorado, where gold was as
abundant as were the common metals in the Old World, and
where precious stones were to be had, almost for the picking
up. These rumors fired the hopes of three men in the Spanish
colony at Panama, namely, Francisco Pizarro and Diego de
Almagro, both soldiers of fortune, and Hernando de Luque, a
Spanish priest. As it was primarily from the efforts of
these three that that astonishing episode, the Spanish
conquest of Peru, came to pass.
The
character of that empire which the Spaniards discovered and
undertook to conquer may be briefly sketched.
According
to the traditions of Peru, there had come to that country,
then lying in barbarism and darkness, two "Children of
the Sun." These had taught them wise customs and the
arts of civilization, and from them had sprung by direct
descent the Incas, who thus ruled over them by a divine
right. Besides the ruling Inca, whose person and decrees
received an honor that was almost worship, there were
numerous nobles, also of the royal blood, who formed a
ruling caste. These were held in great honor, and were
evidently of a race superior to the common people, a fact to
which the very shape of their skulls testifies.
The
government was developed to an extraordinary pitch of
control over even the private lives of the people. The whole
land and produce of the country were divided into three
parts, one for the Sun, the supreme national deity; one for
the Inca; and the third for the people. This last was
divided among them according to their needs, especially
according to the size of their families, and the
distribution of land was made afresh each year. On this
principle, no one could suffer from poverty, and no one
could rise by his efforts to a higher position than that
which birth and circumstances allotted to him. The
government prescribed to every man his local habitation, his
sphere of action, nay, the very nature and quality of that
action. He ceased to be a free agent; it might almost be
said, that it relieved him of personal responsibility. Even
his marriage was determined for him; from time to time all
the men and women who had attained marriageable age were
summoned to the great squares of their respective towns, and
the hands of the couples joined by the presiding magistrate.
The consent of parents was required, and the preference of
the parties was supposed to be consulted, but owing to the
barriers imposed by the prescribed age of the parties, this
must have been within rather narrow limits. A dwelling was
prepared for each couple at the charge of the district, and
the prescribed portion of land assigned for their
maintenance.
The country
as a whole was divided into four great provinces, each ruled
by a viceroy. Below him, there was a minute subdivision of
supervision and authority, down to the division into
decades, by which every tenth man was responsible for his
nine countrymen.
The
tribunals of justice were simple and swift in their
procedure, and all responsible to the Crown, to whom regular
reports were forwarded, and who was thus in a position to
review and rectify any abuses in the administration of the
law.
The
organization of the country was altogether on a much higher
level than that encountered by the Spaniards in any other
part of the American continent. There was, for example, a
complete census of the people periodically taken. There was
a system of posts, carried by runners, more efficient and
complete than any such system in Europe. There was, lastly,
a method of embodying in the empire any conquered country
that can only be compared to the Roman method. Local customs
were interfered with as little as possible, local gods were
carried to Cuzco and honored in the pantheon there, and the
chiefs of the country were also brought to the capital,
where they were honored and by every possible means attached
to the new régime. The language of the capital was
diffused everywhere, and every inducement to learn it
offered, so that the difficulty presented by the variety of
dialects was overcome. Thus the Empire of the Incas achieved
solidarity very different from the loose and often unwilling
cohesion of the various parts of the Mexican empire, which
was ready to fall to pieces as soon as opportunity offered.
The Peruvian empire arose as one great fabric, composed of
numerous and even hostile tribes, yet, under the influence
of a common religion, common language, and common
government, knit together as one nation, animated by a
spirit of love for its institutions and devoted loyalty to
its sovereign. They all learned thus to bow in unquestioning
obedience to the decrees of the divine Inca. For the
government of the Incas, while it was the mildest, was the
most searching of despotisms.
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