Visit of the Academicians to Quito in 1736....Inscription left
by....Climate of Quito....View of Mountains at....Description of
Chimboraso....Of Cayambe urcu....Of Antisana....Of Cotopaxi....Of
Pichincha....Of El Altar....Description of the fertility of the
Valleys....Mines....Ruins of Temples, Palaces, and Fortified
Places....Account of the Indians....Of Commerce.
In 1736 the academy of sciences at Paris sent M. Luis Godin, M. Peter
Bouguer, M. Charles de la Condamine and others to Quito, in order to
make some astronomical and physical observations. They were accompanied,
by order of the Spanish Court, by Don Jorge Juan, and Don Antonio de
Ulloa. Having finished their operations they left the following
inscription in marble on the wall of the church belonging to the
ex-Jesuits:--
Observationibus Ludovici Godin, Petri Bouguer, Caroli Mariæ de la
Condamine á Regia Parasiensi Scientiarum Academia, inventa sunt
Quiti latitudo hujusce templiaustralis grad. 0 min. 3 sec. 18.
longitudo occidentalis ab observatorio Regio grad. 81, min. 22.
Declinatio acus magneticæ à borea ad orientem, exeunte anno 1736
grad. 8, min. 45; anno 1742 grad. 8, min. 20. Inclinatio ejusdem
infra orizontem parte boreali, conchoe anno 1739 grad. 12. Quiti
1741 grad. 15. Altitudines supra libellam maris geometrice collectæ
in exapedis Parisiensibus spectabiliorum nive perenni hujus
provinciæ montium quorum plerique flammas evomuerunt--Cota-cache
2567, Cayambur 3028, Antisana 3016, Cotopaxi 2952, Tunguragua 2623,
Sangay etiam nunc ardentis 2678, Chimboraso 3220, Ilinisa 2717,
Soli Quitensis in foro majori 1462, Crucis in proximo Pichincha
montis vertice conspicuæ 2042, acutioris ac lapidei cacuminis nive
plerumque operti 2432, ut et nivis infimæ permanentis in montibus
nivosis: media elevatio mercurii in barometro suspensi in Zona
Torrida, eaque parum variabilis in ora maritima pollicum 28.
linearum 0. Quiti poll. 20. lin. 0¼ in Pichinche ad crucem poll.
17. lin. 7. ad nivem poll. 16. lin. 0 spiritus vini qui in
thermometro Reaumuriano à partibus 1000 incipiente gelu ad 1080
partes in aqua fervente intumescit: dilatio Quiti à partibus 1008
ad partes 1018 juxta mare a 1017 ad 1029 in fastigio Pichinche à
995 ad 1012. Soni velocitatis unius minuti secundi intervalo
hæxapedarum 175. Penduli simplicis equinoctialis, unius minuti
secundi temporis medii in altitudine soli Quitensis archetypus.
{-------------------------}
{-------------------------}
{-------------------------}
(Mensuruæ naturalis exemplar, utinam et
universalis)
Aqualis 5079/10000 Hexapedæ, seu pedibus 3 pollicibus 0. lineis
6-83/100 major in proximæ maris littore 27/100 lin. minor in apice
Pichinche 16/100 lin. Refractio Astronomica Orizontalis sub
Æquatore media, juxta mare 27 min. ad nivem in Chimboraso 19´ 51´´;
ex qua et aliis observatis Quiti 22´ 50´´. Limborum inferiorum
Solis in Tropicis, Dec. 1736, et Junii 1737, distantia instrumento
dodecapedalia mensurata grad. 47, min. 28, sec. 36, ex qua positis
diametris Solis min. 32, sec. 37, et 31´ 33´´. Refractione in 66,
grad. altitudinis 0´ 15´´. Parallaxi vero 4´ 10´´ eruiter
obliquitas Eclipticæ, circa Equinoctium Martii 1737, grad. 23, min.
28, sec. 28. Stellæ triem in Baltheo Orionis mediæ (Bayero E.)
Declinatio Australis Julio 1737 grad. 1, min. 23, sec. 40. Ex arcu
graduum plusquam trium reipsa dimenso gradus Meridiani, seu
latitudinis primus, ad libellam maris reductus Hexap. 36650. Quorum
memoriam ad Physices, Astronomiæ Geographiæ Nautice incrementa hoc
marmore parieti Templi Colegii Maximii Quitensis Soc. Jesu affixo,
hujus et posteri Ævi utilitati V. D. C. Spissimi Observatories Anno
Christi 1742.
M. de la Condamine fixed his meridian on the terrace of the college; but
this line being traced on brick became effaced, and in 1766 another was
substituted on stone, and a Latin inscription on marble was placed on
the wall near to it.
The climate of Quito is remarkably agreeable, and almost invariable; the
indication of winter is the fall of rain, and the absence of rain
constitutes the summer season. During the months of December, January,
February, and March it generally rains every afternoon; usually
beginning at half-past one o'clock and continuing till five. A rainy or
even a cloudy morning is seldom seen at Quito, and even during the rainy
season the evenings and mornings are most beautiful.
The temperature is so benign, that vegetation never ceases; hence this
city is called the evergreen Quito, _siempre verde_ Quito; it is also
called the everlasting spring, _eterna primavera_; both which epithets
it may be said to deserve, for the native trees are all evergreens, and
the fields on the slopes of the mountains never lose their verdure.
From the terrace of the government palace there is one of the most
enchanting prospects that human eye ever witnessed, or nature ever
exhibited. Looking to the south, and glancing along towards the north,
eleven mountains covered with perpetual snow present themselves, their
bases apparently resting on the verdant hills that surround the city,
and their heads piercing the blue arch of heaven, while the clouds hover
midway down them, or seem to crouch at their feet. Among these, the most
lofty are Cayambe urcu, Imbaburu, Ilinisa, Antisana, Chimboraso, and the
beautifully magnificent Cotopaxi, crowned with its volcano, which during
the greater part of the three years that I was a resident in this part
of America was continually ejecting either smoke or flames, not
observable during the day, but particularly visible in the morning and
evening.
Having mentioned these mountains, I shall give a brief description of
the most remarkable in the province of Quito, being the most elevated in
the new world, and till the discovery of the Himmalah mountains,
considered the highest on the globe.
Chimboraso is the "Giant of the Andes," the hoary head of which may be
seen from the mouth of the Guayaquil river, a distance of not less than
one hundred and eighty miles; and here the view is certainly more
imposing than when we observe it from the plains extended at its foot:
seen from that spot it looks like an enormous semi-transparent dome,
defined by the deep azure of the sky; at the same time it cannot be
mistaken for a cloud, on account of its solid appearance and well
defined edges, so different from the aspect of those collections of
vapours. The height of this enormous mass, from the level of the sea,
was ascertained by M. de Humboldt to be twenty-two thousand four hundred
and forty feet. Its height from the road leading to Quito, which passes
along the plain at the foot of the mountain called _el paramo_, or _el
pajonal_, is twelve thousand one hundred and eighty feet, and five
thousand four hundred and sixteen feet above the limit of perpetual
snow, under the scorching sun of the equator, and sixteen thousand eight
hundred and ninety-two above what is computed to be the limit in
England.
M. de Humboldt has remarked, that "mountains which would astonish us by
their height, if they were placed near the sea shore, seem to be but
hills when they rise from the ridge of the Cordilleras." Without
scarcely daring to contradict this most scientific traveller, I cannot
avoid expressing my own feelings when I viewed Chimboraso, even at its
foot. Perhaps my ideas of grandeur are not correct, so that I must
appeal to persons of more extensive conceptions, to know whether a mass
rising twelve thousand one hundred and eighty feet above the head of an
observer can be considered a "hill!" In the comprehensive mind of a
philosopher, the base, not only of this mountain, but the whole range of
the Andes, may be a matter not worthy of attention, and consequently
detached parts of it must form minor objects. I viewed Chimboraso with
sensations of inexpressible delight, mixed with a kind of veneration
perhaps more strongly impressed, from the consideration, that it was
considered the highest mountain on the globe, for at that time (1809) I
had not heard it questioned, and much less denied. A kind of reverential
awe crept over me as I stood and gazed on this majestic mass, such as
may be more easily imagined than described.
The figure of Chimboraso resembles a truncated cone, with a spherical
summit. From the foot of the snow its sides are covered with a calcined
matter, resembling white sand; and although no tradition exists of its
active volcanic state, yet the issuing of some streams of hot water from
the north side of it seems to warrant that it is a volcano, or that it
possesses volcanic properties; and the circular summit of the mountain
has the appearance "of those paps without craters, which the elastic
force of the vapours swells up in regions where the hollow crust of the
globe is mined by subterraneous fires."
From the melting of the ice, and perhaps with the assistance of some
undiscovered springs on the sides of this mountain, the rivers of
Huaranda, Huando, and Machala, have their origin.
Cayambe urcu, Cayambe mountain, is the loftiest of the Cordilleras,
excepting Chimboraso; its elevation above the level of the sea is
nineteen thousand three hundred and sixty feet, and above that of the
plasa mayor of Quito nine thousand one hundred and eighteen. It bears
some resemblance to Chimboraso in its dome-shaped summit, and, seen from
Quito, it is the most majestic. The beauty of the appearance of Cayambe
urcu is rendered more interesting at sunset, on a clear evening; Huahua
Pichincha, little Pichincha, being due west of it, the shadow of this
may be observed gradually covering the foreground of that, and a few
seconds before the sun dips in the horizon, the shadow ascends the
mountain with great rapidity, and finally, in a moment, the whole is
dissolved in darkness. An impression is made on the mind of the
observer, that this is caused by an overshadowing, and he remains gazing
in expectation that the mountains will _again emerge_; but the very
short duration of twilight soon convinces him that he looks in vain; and
when he turns his eyes from Cayambe to search for the other mountains,
they are gone also. This colossal mountain is crossed on its summit by
the equator, and were it not overtopped by its neighbour Chimboraso, it
would appear as if destined by the hand of nature to be a monumental
division of the two hemispheres. Cayambe is a volcano; but its crater
has never been examined, nor are there any traditions of its being in a
state of injurious activity. At the foot there are several vestiges of
mines, said to have been very rich when worked by the indians before the
conquest of the country, but at present they are entirely abandoned. The
rivers which have their origin in the north and west sides of Cayambe
empty themselves by the Esmeraldas and Mira into the Pacific; the others
into the Atlantic, by the Marañon.
Antisana is a porphyritic mountain; its summit is nineteen thousand one
hundred and fifty feet above the level of the sea, on which there is
the crater of a volcano: near to the foot of this mountain is the small
village of Antisana, situated at the amazing height of thirteen thousand
five hundred feet above the sea; it is considered to be the highest
inhabited spot on the surface of the globe.
Seen from Quito, Cotopaxi is the most beautiful mountain in the whole
range, on account of its shape, being that of a truncated cone, having a
flat summit; it is eighteen thousand eight hundred and ninety feet above
the level of the sea, and, as already observed, its volcano, the crater
opening on the top of the mountain, is in constant activity, appearing
sometimes in the morning and evening like a colossal beacon: the flame
rises in such a manner, that its light is reflected from the icy coating
of the mountain.
A faint idea of the majestic Cotopaxi may be conveyed, if we consider
that it is nearly as high above the level of the sea as Mount Vesuvius
would be were it placed on the top of Mont Blanc, the highest point of
the Alps--or if the highest volcano in the old world, Etna, were placed
on the top of Bennevis, the highest mountain in Scotland, and both on
the top of Snowdon, the loftiest mountain in Great Britain; the crater
of Etna would not then be on a level with that of Cotopaxi.
Cotopaxi is the most dreadful volcano in the province of Quito, and its
ravages are spoken of by the inhabitants with horror. In 1738 the flame
which rose from the crater ascended to the height of three thousand feet
above the summit of the mountain: in 1743 its roarings were heard at the
distance of two hundred leagues, at Hurda; at Guayaquil, a distance of
fifty-two leagues, they were mistaken for loud peals of thunder. This
was the first eruption after the arrival of the Spaniards in this part
of America; but a short time before their appearance, when Pedro
Alvarado was on his march from Punto Viejo, the first eruption took
place, at which time a huge mass of stone was ejected, which the natives
call the head of the Inca, _cabesa del Inca_. The traditional record of
the indians is, that this explosion and ejectment happened on the very
day on which Atahualpa was strangled at Caxamarca, for which reason it
received the name which it now bears.
Before the second eruption, in 1743, a rumbling subterraneous noise was
heard, which continued to increase for five or six days, when an
eruption took place on the summit, and three other apertures or craters
made their appearance about the middle of the acclivity, the whole
mountain being covered with snow till the moment that the eruption took
place, when the entire frozen mass was instantaneously melted by the
streams of melted lava, excepting some huge heaps that were thrown into
the air, where they melted amid the flames of the ignited matter that
was ejected. The melted snow overflowed the country lying between
Cotopaxi and Tacunga, a distance of five leagues, destroying the houses,
inhabitants, and cattle. The river of Tacunga was too limited to carry
off the enormous quantity of matter which flowed into it, and part of
the town and property on the adjacent country was destroyed. This
dreadful scene of devastation continued for three days, and the country
at the foot of the mountain, and extending more than three leagues on
each side, was covered with cinders and scoria. During this time of
terror and dismay to the people of Quito, Tacunga, Ambato, Riobamba, and
the surrounding villages, the roaring of the volcano seemed to increase;
but on the fifth day all was quiet; the fire and the smoke disappeared,
and the terrified inhabitants hoped that all the combustible matter was
consumed, and that they should, consequently, thenceforward live
securely from the fury of this devastating enemy.
In the month of May, 1774, the flames forced their passage through the
sides of the mountain, and continued to burn till November, when an
eruption, equal to that of the preceding year took place, and the
inhabitants of the surrounding towns were afraid that utter ruin awaited
both them and the whole country. At this eruption enormous quantities of
ashes were thrown out, which mixing with the water and mud darkened the
current of the Marañon to the distance of more than a hundred leagues;
so that the Jesuit missionaries, seeing not only that the colour of the
water was changed, but that many dead bodies, drowned animals, pieces of
furniture, and wrecks of houses floated down the stream, and hearing
also the loud roaring of the volcano, sent expresses to inquire the fate
of their countrymen, imagining that something more dreadful had occurred
than what had really taken place.
On the 4th of April, 1768, another explosion took place; but nothing
except ashes were thrown or carried to any considerable distance; the
latter were ejected in such quantities, that the sun was completely
hidden, and from half past two o'clock till the following morning the
inhabitants of the neighbouring towns and villages were obliged to light
candles and to use lanterns in the streets.
In January, 1803, an explosion took place, after all external
appearances of the existence of a volcano, or that either fire, smoke or
vapour had ceased to be visible for more than twenty years. In one night
the activity of the subterraneous fires became so powerful, that the
surface of the mountain was heated to such a degree as to melt the whole
of the immense quantity of ice and snow which covered it to an
unfathomable depth, and to a height, from the limit of perpetual snow,
of not less than four thousand two hundred feet. At sunrise on the
following morning the whole cone was entirely deprived of its customary
covering, and of its dark brown appearance. At this time the damage
sustained was not so considerable as at the former explosions; nothing
was injured except some houses and cattle that were washed away by the
sudden increase of the waters. M. de Humboldt says, that he heard the
tremendous noise of the volcano, like continued discharges of a battery,
at Guayaquil, fifty-two leagues in a straight line from the crater; it
was heard also even on the Pacific Ocean to the south west of the island
of Puna.
From the east side of Cotopaxi the river Napo takes it rise; and from
the south the Cotuche and Alagues, which afterwards unite and enter the
Marañon; to the north rises the river del Pedregal, which after
receiving some minor streams joins the Esmeraldas, which empties itself
into the Pacific Ocean.
Carguairaso is a volcano, the summit of which is fourteen thousand seven
hundred feet above the level of the sea; it is situated in the province
of Riobamba. In the year 1698 it ejected such enormous quantities of
water, mud and stones as to destroy the crops in the neighbouring
fields, and the lives of many thousands of the inhabitants. This
dreadful calamity was also accompanied by one of the most alarming
earthquakes that had been felt in this part of South America.
To the westward of Quito is the volcano of Pichincha, on the eastern
skirt of which the city is built. The mountain is elevated fifteen
thousand nine hundred and forty feet above the level of the sea. The
greatest explosions of this volcano have been in the years 1535, 1575,
1660, and 1690; in the last of which very fine ashes continued to fall
in Quito for twelve days; the air was darkened by them, and the streets
were covered more than two feet thick. The crater of this volcano opens
to the westward, so that Quito must suffer from it so long as this
continues to be the only crater, for the ashes are blown over the top of
the mountain by a westerly wind; but the ravages committed by it are
generally limited to the province of Esmeraldas.
In 1811 I observed the leaves of the plantains covered with very fine
ashes, which had been ejected from Pichincha, and carried to the
distance of thirty-one leagues.
The summit of this mountain is called Rucu Pichincha, old Pichincha; it
is composed of several spire-shaped rocks, rising above the snow, at the
back of the crater; these are seen from Mindo, a small village situated
near the road which I re-explored, between Quito and Esmeraldas.
Detached from this there is the top of another mountain, connected with
the same base, and called Huahna Pichincha, young Pichincha; its head is
rocky, and it is the highest point that the Spanish and French
academicians arrived at during their operations.
El Altar, formerly called by the indians Caparurar, and which name it
still retains among the natives, when speaking of it in Quichua,
signifying the snow mountain, was anciently higher than Chimboraso is at
present; but the volcano having consumed the walls of the crater till
they were incapable of supporting their own weight, the top fell in.
This was the case with that of Carguairaso in 1698; and the ruins of the
two volcanos bear a strong similarity in their pointed ridges, their
spire-like rocks, and leaning directions; they appear as if falling into
decayed heaps.
I have only mentioned the most remarkable of the mountains visible at
the city of Quito; but besides these are the following in different
parts of the kingdom:
MOUNTAINS.
Aritahua
Asuay
Caxanuma
Cotacache
Guacaya
Sinchulagua
Quelendana
Rumi nahui
Supay urcu
Tolonta
Tunguragua
Uritusinga
Yana urcu
Imbaburu.
VOLCANIC MOUNTAINS.
Cumbal
Sangay
Sara-urcu.
Many of the ravines, quebradas, and valleys in this province have a
very warm atmosphere, which in some is so very hot and unwholesome that
they are uninhabitable. Other valleys which are more elevated are
remarkably healthy, uncommonly productive, and extremely delightful as
places of residence. One of these, called Pomasqui, is about five
leagues from Quito, where sugar-cane arrives at a state of maturity in
three years, and where many of the intertropical fruits come to their
greatest perfection. This luxury is enhanced by the proximity of other
situations possessing all the variety of climates known in the world: in
the course of three hours a person may experience the rigidity of the
poles, the oppressive heat of the equator, and all the intermediate
temperatures. A peon will ascend a mountain in the morning, and return
with ice so early in the day as to afford time to allow him to bring
before sunset the luscious pine-apple, the banana, and the chirimoya, to
where the apple, peach, and pear grow and ripen. There the botanist at
one glance would compass the whole of the vegetable creation, and in one
day's excursion would range from the palm to the region where vegetation
becomes extinct.
These valleys are principally under cultivation, and bless the
husbandman with a continued succession of crops; for the uninterrupted
sameness of the climate in any spot is such as to preclude the plant as
well as the fruit from being damaged by sudden changes in the
temperature of the atmosphere, changes which are in other countries so
detrimental to the health of the vegetable world. The fertility of some
of these valleys exceeds all credibility, and the veracity of the
description would be doubted, did not the knowledge of their localities
and the universal descriptions of the equability and benignity of these
climates ensure the probability. An European is astonished on his first
arrival here to see the plough and the sickle, the sower and the
thrashing-floor, at the same time in equal requisition:--to see at one
step a herb fading through age, and at the next one of the same kind
springing up--one flower decayed and drooping, and its sister unfolding
her beauties to the sun--some fruits inviting the hand to pluck them,
and others in succession beginning to shew their ripeness--others can
scarcely be distinguished from the colour of the leaves which shade
them, while the opening blossoms ensure a continuation. Nothing can be
more beautiful than to stand on an eminence and observe the different
gradations of the vegetable world, from the half-unfolded blade just
springing from the earth, to the ripe harvest yellowing in the sun and
gently waving with the breeze.
An enumeration of the different vegetable productions of this province
would be useless; it will be sufficient to observe, that grain, pulse,
fruits, esculents, and horticultural vegetables are produced in the
greatest abundance and of an excellent quality, as well as all kinds of
flesh meat and poultry.
The province of Quito abounds in veins of gold and silver ore; but at
present (1810) none are wrought. Grains of gold are often found among
the sand washed down from Pichincha; but no search has ever been made to
discover the matrix, nor does any tradition exist, nor any vestige
remain of the working of mines in this mountain.
The mountains in the neighbourhood of Palactawga, in the district of
Riobamba, are full of veins of gold and silver ore; but, excepting what
is gathered when the rainy season ceases among the decombres washed
down, they are entirely neglected; however, Don Martin Chiriboga, in
1808, had selected a very rich vein, which he assured me he had chosen
out of thirteen shewn to him, and had taken out a register for the
working of it; but during my stay in the province nothing effectual was
done.
Near a village called Puncho a vein of cinnabar was discovered and
seized by the government, because mines producing quicksilver were a
royal monopoly; but a German mineralogist having been sent for from
Lima, to form an assay of the ore, declared in his report to the royal
audience, that it was a mine of sheet tin, _haja de lata_, not knowing
the proper name for tin; however this mistake caused the tribunal to
declare, that the mine should not be wrought nor again mentioned in
court.
At Popayan and Cuenca there are many veins of iron, according to the
generally received reports, particularly at the latter place, which is
said to stand on a bed of iron ore. As I did not visit Cuenca, I mention
this on the authority of several individuals, of whose veracity I have
no reason to doubt.
I have already, when at Huacho, spoken of the character of the Peruvian
indians; and as those of Quito were under the government of three of the
Incas, received their laws, rites, and customs, and adopted their
language, it is only reasonable to consider them a part of that nation,
or rather, that the character of that nation was stamped on their habits
and customs: at least, persevering industry, whether the result of their
becoming the subjects of the Inca, or otherwise, is strongly marked in
many of the remains of buildings in the territory belonging to Quito.
The ruins near to Cayambe may certainly be called superb. They are
supposed to be the remains of a temple dedicated to the great creating
spirit, Pachacamac. These ruins are on an elevated part of the plain:
their form is a circle forty-eight feet in diameter; the walls are
fifteen feet high and five thick, and the whole is built of adobes,
sun-dried bricks, cemented with clay. The materials of which the walls
are constructed are in a state of perfect preservation, which fact
appeared to me more surprising than the building itself; because the
climate is very different from that on the coast of Peru, where I had
seen buildings of this class. Here the rains are both violent and of
long continuance, nevertheless the walls are in many parts entire,
though formed of clay, and seem by their hardness destined to defy the
ravages of time for centuries to come.
At the northern extremity of the plains on which the town of Tacunga is
built are the remains of Callo, belonging at present to a farm in the
possession of the Augstin friars. This edifice, supposed to have been a
palace of the Inca, was built of porphyry; the stones were cut into long
square prisms of different dimensions, having the exterior surface
slightly convex, except at the doors, where the fronts are plain; this
gives to the walls the fluted appearance of rustic work. The stones are
joined with such extreme nicety and exactness that the point of a
pen-knife cannot be introduced between them. A kind of asphaltum seems
to have been used as a cement, although in other Peruvian buildings a
marly soil was employed for this purpose.
About one hundred yards from these ruins, fronting the principal
entrance, there is a mount, standing in the middle of a plain: it is
about a hundred and fifty feet high, having the shape of a cone, and
appears to owe its existence ta human labour. It is called _el panecillo
de Callo_, and, like that which stands at the southern extremity of the
city of Quito, is supposed to have served the purpose of a watch-tower,
because it commands an extensive view of the surrounding country, and
might be one of the means employed to provide for the safety of the
conqueror against any sudden surprize of his new subjects. If we believe
the tradition of the Indians, it is a huaca or mausoleum of some of the
royal race of the Incas; but this is not correct, because, according to
Garcilaso, these were all interred at Cusco, to which place they were
conveyed if they died in any other part of the country, Cusco being
considered their holy city.
Near the town of Atun Cañar there is another ruin, similar to that at
Callo, but of much greater extent; it was visited by M. de Humboldt, who
gives a description of it in his researches. At the distance of six
leagues is another at Pomallacta, and there are more in many parts of
the country.
Several remains of fortified places, called pucuras, still exist; they
are hills or mounts surrounded by ranges of moats or ditches, dug behind
each other, and protected or strengthened with parapets of stone, whence
the holders could safely annoy the enemy. These places were so common,
that almost every eligible situation was thus fortified: the outward
moat of circumvallation at Pambamarca is upwards of a league and a half
in extent.
The oral traditions of the indians touching the state of their country
before the arrival of the prince Huaina Capac, afterwards Inca of Peru,
are very trifling, and clothed in almost impenetrable obscurity; indeed,
the language spoken by them is entirely unknown, having been completely
superseded by the Quichua, the court language of the Incas.
Huaina Capac having conquered the capital, called at that time Lican, he
espoused Pacchachiri, the daughter of the Quitu or supreme chief; she
was afterwards the mother of the unfortunate Atahualpa, to whom the Inca
at his death bequeathed the territory, which had formerly belonged to
the Quitu: the result of which bequest has already been shewn at
Caxamarca.
Of the present race of indians, I shall only add to what I have said
when speaking generally of this class of the inhabitants of South
America, that the law of repartimiento, and the continuation of
corregidores in the provinces have weighed most heavily on the
unfortunate indians of the kingdom of Quito; consequently with their
debasement all the vices of indolence, apathy, and sloth are more
visible here than in those parts of the colonies, where the curse of
conquest has been less felt.
Owing to the numerous population of Quito, its various climates, and
consequent diversity of productions, it must at some future period
become highly interesting to the naturalist, the merchant, and the
traveller. At present, one of the principal branches which will attract
commercial attention is that of wool, the quantity being great, and the
quality above mediocrity; but it will gradually improve as a more
perfect knowledge of the treatment of sheep becomes known to the
natives.