Which contains the description and appearance of the kingdom of Peru
from the city of Quito to the town of La Plata, a distance of more than
seven hundred leagues.
Now that I have finished what there is to be told respecting the
province of Popayan, it appears to me that it is time to use my pen in
giving an account of the notable things that are to be said of Peru,
commencing from the city of Quito. But, before describing that city, it
will be convenient to give a sketch of the whole country, which is seven
hundred leagues long and one hundred in breadth, rather more in some
parts and less in others.
I do not at present desire to treat of the whole empire over which the
Kings Yncas ruled, which was more than one thousand two hundred leagues
long, but I shall confine myself to that part which is understood under
the name of Peru, from Quito to La Plata.
In this land of Peru there are three desert ranges where men can in no
wise exist. One of these comprises the _montaña_ (forests) of the Andes,
full of dense wildernesses, where men cannot, nor ever have lived. The
second is the mountainous region, extending the whole length of the
Cordillera of the Andes, which is intensely cold, and its summits are
covered with eternal snow, so that, in no way, can people live in this
region, owing to the snow and the cold, and also because there are no
provisions, all things being destroyed by the snow and by the wind,
which never ceases to blow. The third range comprises the sandy deserts
from Tumbez to the other side of Tarapaca, in which there is nothing to
be seen but sand-hills and the fierce sun which dries them up, without
water, nor herb, nor tree, nor created thing, except birds, which, by
the gift of their wings, wander wherever they list. This kingdom, being
so vast, has great deserts, for the reasons I have now given.
The inhabited region is after this fashion. In parts of the mountains of
the Andes there are ravines and dales, which open out into deep valleys
of such width as often to form great plains between the mountains, and,
although the snow falls, it all remains on the higher part. As these
valleys are closed in, they are not molested by the winds, nor does the
snow reach them, and the land is so fruitful that all things which are
sown yield abundantly, and there are trees and many birds and animals.
The land being so fertile, is well peopled by the natives. They make
their villages with rows of stones roofed with straw, and live healthily
and in comfort. Thus the mountains of the Andes form these dales and
ravines, in which there are populous villages, and rivers of excellent
water flow near them. Some of these rivers send their waters to the
South Sea, entering by the sandy deserts which I have mentioned, and the
humidity of their water gives rise to very beautiful valleys with great
rows of trees. The valleys are two or three leagues broad, and great
quantities of _algoroba_[260] trees grow in them, which flourish even at
great distances from any water. Wherever there are groves of trees the
land is free from sand, and very fertile and abundant. In ancient times
these valleys were very populous, and still there are Indians in them,
though not so many as in former days. As it never rains in these sandy
deserts and valleys of Peru, they do not roof their houses as they do in
the mountains, but build large houses of _adobes_,[261] with pleasant
terraced roofs of matting to shade them from the sun, nor do the
Spaniards use any other roofing than these reed mats. To prepare their
fields for sowing, they lead channels from the rivers to irrigate the
valleys, and the channels are so well made, and with so much regularity,
that all the land is irrigated without any waste. This system of
irrigation makes the valleys very green and cheerful, and they are full
of the fruit trees both of Spain and of this country. At all times they
raise good harvests of maize and wheat, and of everything that they sow.
Thus, although I have described Peru as being formed of three desert
ridges, yet from them, by the will of God, descend these valleys and
rivers, without which no man could live. This is the cause why the
natives were so easily conquered; for, if they rebelled, they would all
perish of cold and hunger. Except the land which they inhabit, the whole
country is full of snowy mountains of enormous height, and very
terrible.
This kingdom, as I have already said, is seven thousand leagues long
from north to south, but if we include all the country that the Kings
Yncas had under their dominion, its length would be one thousand two
hundred leagues of road from north to south on a meridian. Its greatest
breadth, from east to west, will be little less than one hundred
leagues, and in other places from forty to sixty, more or less. What I
say of the length and breadth is to be understood as applied to the
mountains also, which extend over the whole of this land of Peru. And
this mighty chain, which is called the Andes, is forty leagues from the
South Sea in some parts, in others sixty; in some more, and in others
less. Being so very high, and the greatest heights being towards the
South Sea, the rivers which flow from them on that side are small
because their courses are short.
The other chain of mountains, which also extends along the whole length
of this country, prolongs its spurs into the plains, and ends close to
the sea in some places, and at others eight or ten leagues from it, more
or less. The climate of these plains is more hot than cold, and in some
seasons more so than in others, and the plains are so low, that the sea
is almost as high as the land. The season of greatest heat is when the
sun has passed by and reached the tropic of capricorn, which is on the
11th of December, and then it turns again towards the equinoctial line.
In the mountains, although there are provinces with a warm climate, yet
the contrary may be said of them, that there is more cold weather than
hot. So much I have said concerning these provinces, and further on I
shall add what more there is to be observed concerning them.