have over the Indians is prejudicial to the Crown of Spain that by this means your Majesty loses an infinit number of Subjects who are every day cut off without any lawful occasion whereas if suffer'd to live they would chearfully submit to your Majesty's Government when they saw the difference between your Majesty's Yoke and that Slavery in which they are held by their private Masters If your Majesty had once receiv'd 'em into the number of your Subjects so that they might be secur'd from the inhuman Severities they now daily endure they would love and serve your Majesty with incredible Zeal being naturally inclin'd to be very submissive to their Princes Your Majesty may farther consider that you lose immense Riches by the cruel depopulation of the Indies which otherwise you might justly acquire for 't is impossible for the Spaniards to subsist long in the Indies if the Natives be exterminated And those Treasures sufficient to enrich all Spain would be no small advantage to promote your Designs and enable you to resist your Enemies If there come no Mony from the Indies but that Spring of Treasure be suffer'd to dry up Spain must necessarily sustain great Inconveniences for want of it Experience already shews that the Indies don't furnish us with so great a quantity as in time past and 't is likely to diminish more and more for time to come Besides the manner of extorting it from the Indians can't possibly last long because 't is too violent a course The Isle of Hispaniola is an unexceptionable Instance of what I say for whereas above three Millions of very fine Gold were drawn out of it at first it cannot now afford the tenth part of that Sum. The least Reflection your Majesty can make will easily convince you how your Revenues every day diminish Your Majesty has nothing certain and stable in the Indies if the Land be not cultivated and the Inhabitants preserv'd for those Labors that are so advantageous You have now but a small number of Indians in all New Spain from whence your Majesty might annually have drawn a Million of Ducats if the Indians had been preserv'd and your Majesty's Interest at first regarded There have been yet greater Confusions and Disorders in Peru and the Mischief daily increases from which Kingdom your Majesty might yearly receive two or three Millions of Gold if the Indians were not treated with so much Injustice and Inhumanity many of 'em having been murder'd togther with their great King Atabalipa All the Gold the Christians have taken by force in Peru would of right have belong'd to your Majesty because that Indian Prince would have voluntarily presented himself to your Majesty with all his Treasures The Church has likewise receiv'd great damage by these Cruelties for as your Majesty has been frustrated of those immense Riches so the Church has lost an infinit number of Souls who have perish'd in their Ignorance when they might have been taught the Mysteries of our Faith so that the Losses sustain'd both by Church and State are irreparable The Kingdom of Spain which your Majesty rules with so much Equity is surrounded with Enemies and in danger of being wasted and ruin'd by the Turks and Moors those declar'd Enemies of the Catholic Faith Because God who is the just Judg and Soveraign Lord of the Universe is grievously offended with the Violence and Massacres which the Spaniards have committed in the Indies where they have opprest and slaughter'd innumerable multitudes of People These Indians have rational Souls form'd after the image and likeness of God and ransom'd by the Blood of his Son who keeps an account of 'em and will not think 'em of no value how ignorant and barbarous soever they seem to be He was pleas'd to choose Spain to the Service of carrying the Light of the Gospel into the New World and to engage those Nations to entertain the Christian Faith And it seem'd as if the Almighty had discover'd all these Temporal Riches to the Spaniards as a recompense for those Spiritual Pleasures with which they were to enrich the Indies But tho he open'd a way for 'em into those vast Regions so wealthy fertil and pleasant so full of Mines of Gold Silver and precious Stones instead of being thankful for all these Favors they have committed the most hainous Crimes to provoke him Now 't is usual for God to distribute his Punishments by a rule of proportion adjusting them to the nature of the Offence If Men sin by Pride he covers 'em with Confusion and Shame if they get any thing unjustly through Avarice he often suffers 'em to lose their own Goods and they that have stolen are in turn rob'd themselves Those that oppress and murder others he permits to fall into the hands of such as treat 'em with the like Cruelty They that take away their Neighbors Wives and violate 'em have sometimes the same Outrages committed on their own And such as usurp Kingdoms that don't belong to 'em by God's Judgment come to see their own Kingdoms invaded by their Enemies and thus it is with other Judgments which frequently answer the different kinds of Sin The Holy Scripture and other Histories are full of Instances to this purpose and Experience every day furnishes us with such marks of the Divine Displeasure as these The Moors once over-run Spain and this was interpreted as a Judgment from God to punish the Crime of King Roderick who ravish'd the Daughter of Count Don Julian tho 't is more probable it was to punish the Crimes of the People of Spain and the Injuries they offer'd their Neighbours and that the Crime of this King only fill'd up the measure of those Vices 'T is convenient to inform your Majesty what is thought by Persons of the best sense who are govern'd by no Prejudice but only compassionate the Sufferings of the poor Indians I have heard many such Persons say I pray God these extravagant Cruelties don't one day fall heavy upon Spain It may be such words as these that drop from many wise Men are so many Advertisements and Menaces from God who has been highly incens'd against this Nation by the Crimes of the Spaniards And we already see that Spain is reduc'd to great Necessities and Mony is very scarce among us tho more Treasures have bin brought hither than Solomon possess'd in all his Glory Most of those that have brought these Riches from the Indies have made a miserable end and their Children are reduc'd to extreme Poverty which justifies the old Maxim Vix gaudet tertius Haeres the third Heir seldom enjoys an ill-gotten Estate and that Passage of holy Scripture He that oppresseth the poor to increase his Riches shall surely come to want Prov. 22. 16. Because as has bin said the Divine Judgments bear some proportion to the Crimes that Men commit If your Majesty have the curiosity to inform your self of the detail of all these matters we can shew you
AN ACCOUNT Of the First VOYAGES and DISCOVERIES Made by the SPANIARDS in America Containing The most Exact Relation hitherto publish'd of their unparallel'd Cruelties on the Indians in the destruction of above Forty Millions of People With the Propositions offer'd to the King of Spain to prevent the further Ruin of the West-Indies By Don Bartholomew de las Casas Bishop of Chiapa who was an Eye-witness of their Cruelties Illustrated with Cuts To which is added The Art of Travelling shewing how a Man may dispose his Travels to the best advantage LONDON Printed by J. Darby for D. Brown at the Black Swan and Bible without Temple-Bar J. Harris at the Harrow in Little Britain and Andr. Bell at the Cross-kevs and Bible in Cornhil M. DC.XC.IX THE CONTENTS THE Introduction page 1. A particular Account of what the Spaniards did in Hispaniola 6. Of the Kingdoms contain'd in the Island of Hispaniola 9. Of the Islands of St. John and Jamaica 18. Of the Island of Cuba 19. Of the Continent 23. Of the Province of Nicaraqua 28. Of New Spain 32. A more particular Account of New Spain 34. Of the Kingdom of Guatimala 41. Of New Spain of Panuco and Xalisco 47. Of the Kingdom of Yucatan 52. Of the Province of St. Martha 60. Of the Province of Carthagena 63. Of the Pearl-Coast and the Island of Trinidado 64. Of the River Yuya-pari 73. Of the Kingdom of Vencuela 74. Of the Provinces of the Continent call'd Florida 80. Of the River de la Plata or Silver River 82. Of the great Kingdoms and Provinces of Peru. 84. A Letter from Frier Mark de Xlicia to the King of Spain against the Cruelties of the Spaniards 87. Of the new Kingdom of Grenada 92. A Letter of Bartholomew de las Casas concerning the Spanish Cruelties in the Well-Indies 100. A Fragment of a Letter relating to the same Affair 104. The Bishop of Chiapa's Discourse to the King of Spain in order to prevent the ruin of the West-Indies 115. His Propositions concerning the Title of the Kings of Spain to America 138. A Dispute between the Bishop of Chiapa and Dr. Sepulueda concerning the lawfulness of the Wars made by the Spaniards on the Indians 150 The Bp of Chiapa's further Sentiments of that affair 160 His Reasons at large for subjecting the West-Indies to the Crown of Spain and thereby preventing the Ravages of the Spaniards there c. 184. Newly publish'd AN Inquiry concerning Virtue in two Discourses the first of Virtue and the belief of a Deity the second of thâ—â— Obligations to Virtue Price bound in Calf 3 s. An Argument shewing that a Standing Army is inconsistent with a Free Government and absolutely destructive to the Libertie of this Nation In two Parts Price 12 d. A Letter from the Author of the Argument against a Standing Army to the Author of the Balancing Letter Price 3 d. The Militia Reform'd or an easy Scheme of furnishing England with a constant Land-Force capable to prevent or to subdue any foren Power and to maintain perpetual Quiet at home without endangering the Public Liberty Price 12 d. A Letter to a Member of Parliament shewing that a Restraint oâ— the Press is inconsistent with the Protestant Religion and dangerous to the Liberties of the Nation Price 6 d. A Letter to his Majesty King William concerning the Expedients us'd by his Predecessors to support the English Monarchy Price 6 d. Some Remarks on the Providences of God to this Nation during the four last Reigns The 2 d Edition By Slings by Bethel Esq Price bound 12 d. Discourses concerning Government by Algernon Sidney Son to Robert Earl of Leicester and Ambassador from the Common-wealth of England to Charles Gustavus King of Sweden Published from an Original Manuscript of the Author Price bound Sixteen Shillings The PREFACE AMerica was first discover'd by Christopher Columbus a Genoese in the year 1492 in the Name of Ferdinando King of Arragon but takes its Name from Americus Vespucius a Florentine who discover'd the Country of Brezil five years after by order of Emanuel King of Portugal The Europeans had no sooner enter'd on this vast Continent and the Islands about it but the Natives shew'd 'em all imaginable Kindness and Respect and were ready to worship 'em as Gods but these soon took care to convince 'em of their Error and to deliver 'em from the danger of falling into this sort of Idolatry by treating 'em with all manner of Cruelties and tormenting 'em like so many Devils so that these barbarous People receiv'd as great a turn in their thoughts concerning the Spaniards as the Barbarians of the Island of Melita did in respect of St. Paul for as these believ'd him to be a God whom they had just before taken for a Murderer so the other really found them to be Murderers whom they had a little before esteem'd as so many Gods The following Relation of the Destruction of many Millions of Indians by all the inhuman methods the Spaniards could invent would appear incredible were not the truth of it confess'd and attested by the Spaniards themselves and among others especially by Don Bartholomew de las Casas Bishop of Chiapa who made large Complaints of these Cruelties to the King of Spain and to the Royal Council for the Indies with a design to put a stop to 'em if possible That he is a Person of irreproachable Credit in this case will appear by the following account wherein he challenges all the World to disprove the truth of the matters of Fact he asserts while he stood the Test of a Court who could easily have detected him if he had attempted to impose on 'em by a malicious Falshood This Bishop writes with such an Air of Honesty Sincerity and Charity as would very well have become one of a better Religion than that in which he had the unhappiness to be educated It may well surprize the Reader to hear a Spanish Prelat declaim so loudly against Persecution and plead so freely for Liberty of Conscience in a Country subjugated to the Inquisition To hear him in his dispute against Doctor Sepulueda decry all methods of Violence for the propagation of the Truth as more sutable to the Maxims of Mahometism than the Principles of Christianity To hear him assert the Natural Right of all Mankind to Liberty and Property and inveigh against all Vsurpation and Tyranny in the smartest Terms is enough to move any one's Wonder and Pity too when on the other hand 't is observ'd how much he magnifies the Power and Authority of the Pope in some of his Propositions contain'd in the following Treatise But all may serve to convince one how great an advantage or disadvantage a Man has as he pleads the Cause of Truth or Error and of the great difference there is between the genuin Language of Reason and good Sense and the servil Prejudices of Bigotry and Superstition 'T is no less a Subject of Admiration that a Book
Mountains to avoid meeting with the Spaniards who now appear'd so terrible and cruel to ' em The Spaniards did not content themselves to beat 'em and to offer 'em many other Indignities but cut their Throats in cold Blood and without any respect either to Age or Quality put their Princes and the Governors of their Cities to death They came to that height of Impudence and Villany that a Spanish Captain had the Insolence to abuse the Wife of the greatest King of the Island This vile fact drove 'em quite to despair so that from that time they sought means of driving the Spaniards out of their Country they betook themselves to Arms and did what they could to defend themselves against these Tyrants but the Weapons they us'd were neither capable of defending them nor of offending their Enemies to any purpose and were more like those that Children use to play with than such as are fit for Souldiers to use in War The Spaniards who were mounted on fine Horses and armed with Lances and Swords look'd upon Enemies so meanly equip'd with the greatest Contempt and committed the most horrible Slaughters with Impunity They pass'd through the several Cities and Towns sparing neither Age nor Sex but kill'd Women and Children as well as Men They rip'd up Women with Child that Root and Branch might be destroy'd together They laid Wagers one with another who should cleave a Man down with his Sword most dexterously at one blow or who should take his Head from his Shoulders most cleverly or who should run a Man through after the most artificial manner They tore away Children out of their Mothers Arms and dash'd out their Brains against the Rocks others they threw into the River diverting themselves with this brutish Sport and giving great shouts while they saw 'em in this misery And to add insulting Scoffs to their Cruelty advis'd 'em to struggle in the Water and try if they could save themselves from drowning They held up the Bodies of Mothers and Children together upon their Lances they set up Gibbets and hang'd up thirteen of these poor Creatures in honour to Jesus Christ and his twelve Apostles as they blasphemously express'd themselves They kindled a great Fire under these Gibbets to burn those they had hang'd upon 'em They cut off the Hands of those they sav'd alive and sent 'em away in that miserable condition bidding 'em carry the News of their Calamities to those that were retir'd into the Mountains to escape the Spaniards They erected a small Scaffold supported with Forks and Poles upon which to execute their Chiefs and those of the most considerable quality among ' em When they had laid 'em at length upon this Scaffold they kindled a gentle Fire to make 'em feel themselves die gradually till the poor Wretches after the most exquisite Pain and Anguish attended with horrible Screeches and Outcries at length expir'd I one day saw four or five Persons of the highest Rank in this Island burn'd after this manner But the dreadful Cries this Torment extorted from 'em incommoding a Spanish Captain and hindring his Sleep he commanded 'em to be presently strangled But a certain Officer whose Name I know and whose Relations are well known at Seville put Gags into their Mouths to hinder 'em from making a Noise that he might not be depriv'd of the brutish Pleasure of broiling them gently till they breath'd out their Souls in this Torment I have been an Eye-witness of all these Cruelties and an infinite number of others which I pass over in silence And because these poor People took all the care they could to hide themselves from a Generation of Men so barbarous and wicked as the Spaniards who had no Sentiment of Humanity Honour or Religion left but acted as if they were made for nothing else but to destroy Mankind to add further to their brutish Cruelty they taught Dogs to go a hunting for these poor Wretches and to devour 'em as if they had been Beasts And because the Indians after they had been provok'd with so many unheard of Injuries now and then kill'd one of them when they met with 'em stragling the Spaniards made a Law among themselves to massacre a hundred Indians for every Spaniard they should kill Of the Kingdoms contain'd in the Island of Hispaniola HIspaniola contains five great Kingdoms the Kings of which were very powerful and govern'd all the other Chiefs whose number is very great yet there are some independent Countries which have their particular Lords and are not subject to any of those Kings One of these Kings they call Magua which signifies a Plain his Name being taken from the situation of his Kingdom which is extremely pleasant This Plain is 80 Leagues in extent from South to North but is only five eight and sometimes ten Leagues in breadth 'T is encompass'd on every side with high Mountains 't is water'd with a great number of Brooks and Rivers of which there are twelve that come not behind those famous Rivers the Ebre the Duere and the Guadalquivir for bigness The Rivers that water this Plain especially those falling down from a Mountain that looks towards the West abound with Gold This Mountain bounds the Province of Cibao where the Mines bearing that Name produce that pure Gold of the fineness of 24 Carrats so much talk'd of in Europe The Soveraign of this Kingdom was call'd Guarionex he had under him such powerful Subjects that one of 'em could bring 16000 Men into the field for the King's Service I knew some of these Indian Lords This King was very submissive to the Kings of Spain and express'd a great deal of Affection to them His Humour was mild and peaceable and his Soul capable of every Vertue He once order'd all his Subjects to bring him each of 'em a great Purse of Gold but finding they were not in a condition to answer his Requirement he remitted half this Tax The Inhabitants of this Island have not the Art of extracting Gold out of the Mines This Cacique voluntarily offer'd himself to the Service of the King of Spain on condition the Queen Isabella would take care that those Lands should be cultivated which the Spaniards inhabited at their first Arrival in the Indies extending about the space of 50 Leagues towards St. Domingo for he said his Subjects had no Experience or Skill to extract Gold out of the Mines If this Condition had been accepted he would faithfully and joyfully have accomplished his Promise which would have been of vast advantage to the King of Spain who might have taken above three Millions of Gold every year out of these Mines and consequently there might now have been fifty Cities in this Province as fine as Seville But what greateful Acknowledgments did the Spaniards return to the kind Offers of this Prince who gave such Proofs of his Good-will to 'em and sincere desire to serve ' em They cover'd him with Shame and Infamy his Wife
was violated as has been said by a Spanish Captain a Wretch unworthy of the Christian Name This Prince might have waited for an opportunity to revenge himself of this Outrage but chose rather to retire and live in Obscurity and Exile in the Province of one of his Subjects voluntarily abidicating his Kingdom and Government The Spaniards being inform'd of the place of his Retreat pursued him with the utmost Fury without giving him time to hide himself They cruelly declar'd War against that Indian Lord that had given him Sanctuary and had receiv'd him with a becoming Humanity and Respect they ravag'd all his Country and never left off their Cruelties till they had found and seiz'd this Fugitive Prince whom they loaded with Chains and put on Ship-board to be carried into Spain as their Prisoner This Vessel was cast away in the Voyage a great many Spaniards drown'd and an incredible sum of Gold and Silver lost Among the rest there was a prodigious lump of Gold as big as a great Loaf which weighed 3600 Crowns Thus did the Vengeance of God meet with 'em for the enormous Crimes they had committed in the Indies The second Kingdom is called Marien where there is a fine Port just at the end of the other Kingdom on the North-side This Kingdom is larger than Portugal and more fruitful and was stor'd with vast numbers of Inhabitants there are divers Mountains in it and several Mines abounding with Gold and Copper The Name of the King of this Country was Guacanagari who had divers Lords under his Jurisdiction 'T was in this Country that famous Pilot who first discover'd America landed Guacanagari receiv'd him with all imaginable Hospitality and Civility he made the best Entertainment he could for all the Spaniards who accompanied him when their Ship was sunk they were receiv'd at this Prince's Court as kindly as if they had been in the Houses of their own natural Relations here they met with all manner of Refreshments and Recruits the Country afforded which were given 'em with great Expressions of Humanity and Compassion on the account of their Hardships This King afterwards to secure himself from the barbarous Usage of the Spaniards when they began to commit their Massacres in his Country abandon'd his Kingdom and was forc'd to retreat into some of the remote Mountains where he died with the Fatigues and Inconveniencies to which he was expos'd Those Indian Lords that depended on him found no better Treatment but perish'd under that horrible Slavery to which the Spaniards had reduc'd ' em Maguana is the third Kingdom of this Island and is an admirable Country both for Health and Fruitfulness Here is made the best Sugar in America Caonabo was the King of it who surpass'd all the other Kings both in regard of his Power the Riches of his Kingdom and the Respect and Ceremony with which he was honour'd This Prince not keeping on his Guard nor at all distrusting what Tricks the Spaniards design'd to play him was surpriz'd in his own House by the Artifices they had laid to insnare him He was put in a Ship to be carried into Spain and there were at the same time six Vessels in the Port ready to set Sail when all on a sudden there rose a horrible Tempest which batter'd the Ships to pieces and sunk 'em with all the Spaniards that were on board King Caonabo loaded with Chains perish'd together with the Vessel in which he was embarqu'd The Almighty was pleas'd to display his just and terrible Judgment by this sudden Storm in destroying so many Spaniards and thereby punishing the Crimes they had committed in abusing the poor Indians This King had three or four Brothers all of 'em valiant and couragious Princes who being much provok'd at the unjust Captivity of the King their Brother and Soveraign and inform'd of the Ravage and Massacres the Spaniards had made in other neighbouring Kingdoms and after all hearing the News of the fatal End of their Brother betook themselves to Arms and sought means of revenging themselves on their Enemies The Spaniards attack'd 'em with their Cavalry which is very formidable to the Indians whom they soon conquer'd and made so prodigious a Slaughter among 'em that half the Kingdom was depopulated and became desert after this Defeat Xavagua is the fourth Kingdom of Hispaniola and is as it were the Heart and Centre of all this Island the Language of it is the most refin'd and polite The People of this Kingdom are the most civiliz'd and their Manners more cultivated than those of other parts of the Country and there are a greater number of great Lords and Persons of Quality among ' em These People are better shap'd and have a finer Aspect than those of the other Kingdoms The King's Name was Behechio he had a Sister call'd Anacaona both of 'em heap'd their Favours on the Spaniards when they landed in their Country and with a great deal of Generosity sav'd 'em from Death which they could not otherwise have avoided They left no Stone unturn'd to shew themselves obliging to the Kings of Spain After Behechio's Death his Sister Anacaona continued absolute Mistress of the whole Kingdom One day the Governor of the Island accompanied with 60 Horse and 300 Foot sends a Summons to about 300 of the greatest Lords of the Country to attend his Person These few Horsemen alone were able to have ravag'd and laid waste not only all this Island but even the whole Continent so defenceless were these poor People The Indian Nobles not at all suspecting any treacherous Design were by the Governor's Order brought into a House cover'd with Straw which he commanded to be set on fire where they perish'd miserably Those of 'em who attempted to escape were pursued by the Spanish Troopers and kill'd without Mercy They also kill'd a vast multitude of the common People cutting 'em and running 'em through with their Swords and Lances This same Governor caus'd Queen Anacaona who had the soveraign Authority after the Death of her Brother as has been said to be hang'd that he might disgrace the Memory of that Princess as much as he could by so vile and ignominious a Death If at any time a Spaniard either touch'd with the Sentiments of Compassion or prompted with those of Avarice thought fit to spare one of these poor Wretches for his own Service another would come transported with Rage and fall upon him in his presence and either run him through the Body or cut off his Legs so as to render him unserviceable Some of these Indians who escap'd this Massacre retir'd into an Island not above eight Leagues distant from this Kingdom to shelter themselves from the Fury of the Spaniards but these were condemned by the Governor to perpetual Slavery The Name of the fifth Kingdom is Hiquey Hiquanama the Queen who govern'd it tho very much advanc'd in Years and decrepit was hang'd by order of the Spaniards who tormented an infinite
to submit to their unjust and cruel Orders Those of the highest rank among the Indians were accus'd of this Crime and this was improv'd against 'em to the King of Spain without considering that 't is a plain Rule in Law that none can be term'd Rebels but Subjects that are revolted from their Prince There 's no good Christian will make any difficulty to conclude that such Missionaries as the Spaniards have not the Qualifications necessary to insinuate the Maxims of our Religion into these People who are naturally free and know not how to bear the Haughtiness and Insolence with which they have been treated for they are peremptorily told you must without any more ado submit to the Obedience of a Foreign Prince whom you never saw nor heard of and if you refuse so to do we 'll cut you in pieces and this no sooner said but done But that which is more unaccountable is that those who yield a blind Obedience to all they command 'em are no better treated than the others for they are made miserable Slaves they exact intolerable Tasks of 'em and condemn 'em to all sorts of Torments So that whole Provinces both Men Women and Children are destroy'd in a short time Nay those whom they kill outright are the happier sort as having an end put to their Miseries in a moment But when they are forc'd by Menaces to promise Fidelity and Obedience to a Foreign Prince can it be pretended they are oblig'd to it in Conscience when this suppos'd Duty is neither founded on the Laws of God nor those of Nations Besides the Threatnings that are made 'em are capable of terrifying Men of the greatest Courage and Resolution wherefore all the Promises obtain'd by such menaces have no value nor obliging force I pass over in silence the Affronts the Insults and Injuries that were offer'd the King of Mexico In a word they have violated all the Laws of Nations and infinitely wrong'd and abus'd the poor Indians This is all the Service the Spaniards have done these People The Governor of this new World supported by his imaginary Titles sent two Captains scarce inferior to himself in Impiety aad Cruelty into the Kingdoms of Guatimala which are situate towards the South they pierc'd as far as the Kingdoms of Naco and Gaymura which extend Northward for the space of about 300 Leagues these Kingdoms border upon that of Mexico These Captains travell'd both by Sea and Land accompanied with a good party of Horse and a considerable number of Foot The Captain whose Lot it was to travel into Guatimala did a world of mischief there the other soon dying he carried Desolation with him every where and fill'd this Kingdom with Blood and Ruin to render the Spaniards formidable even to future Generations I am of opinion that the mischief this Captain did here surpass'd whatever the Europeans had done before in the new World He went by Sea and carried Sword and Fire throughout all the Coasts Some of the Inhabitants of the Kingdom of Yucatan which is in the way to the Kingdoms of Naco and Gaymura made him magnificent Presents yet as soon as he had enter'd their Country he sent his Souldiers into every part of it who committed horrible Spoil and massacred an infinite number of these poor People A furious Spaniard at the head of 300 Men enter'd the Country adjoining to Guatimala set fire to all their Cities and cut the throats of all the Inhabitants without giving any quarter he carried away what Booty he could and continued to pillage the Country for the space of sixscore Leagues This Captain had rebell'd and revolted against his General and his design in ruining the Country after this manner was to put the Spaniards out of a condition to pursue him by preventing their finding Subsistence in a Country thus ruin'd and by exposing 'em to the fury of the Indians who would omit nothing to revenge upon 'em the Injuries and Mischiefs they had receiv'd from their Companions which fell out accordingly For the Spanish General attempting to pursue this Rebel was kill'd by the Indians Those that succeeded him exercised all manner of Cruelties on 'em and reduc'd almost all of 'em to Slavery after they had spoil'd 'em of all their Goods Provisions Clothes Corn Wine and other necessaries of Life The Provinces of Naco and Hondure which were like Gardens of Pleasure were turn'd into melancholy Deserts altho this Country was very full of People 'T is impossible to reflect on these things without being sensibly touch'd and soften'd into Compassion tho one were naturally of an obdurate and sowr Temper They kill'd two Millions of People in this Country in less than ten years so that there are scarce two thousand left in all the vast Extent of it and these are groaning under a heavy yoke of Bondage When they propos'd to 'em to take the Oath of Allegiance to the King of Spain they would give 'em no time to deliberate they must immediately obey or else die by Fire or Sword Of the Kingdom of Guatimala THE Spaniards signaliz'd their entrance into this Kingdom by divers Massacres tho the King came to meet 'em in his Chair of State supported by his Slaves follow'd by a great number of his Lords and with Trumpets and Drums before him to give the greater Testimony of Joy he shew'd 'em all the Courtesy and Civility in the world manifested a great deal of Kindness in readily supplying 'em with plenty of Provisions and gave 'em whatever they could reasonably desire The Spaniards lodg'd without the City the first night thinking they should not be secure enough in a place so well fortified The next day they engag'd the Prince of the place to come out to 'em with the greatest part of the Persons of Quality obliging to bring with them a certain quantity of Gold The Indians made answer that 't was impossible for them to do what was requir'd because their Country did not yield this Metal However this refusal so mov'd the Indignation of the Spaniards that for no other Offence without any formal Process they cast 'em all alive into a great Fire The most considerable Inhabitants of these Provinces seeing their Masters so cruelly treated only because they gave not the Spaniards all the Gold they demanded retir'd with all speed into the Mountains ordering the common People to submit to the Spaniards as their Masters and giving 'em a strict charge by no means to give the least notice of the places where they were gone to hide themselves Abundance of these poor People came accordingly to the Spaniards begging of 'em to receive them into the number of their Servants and promising to serve 'em faithfully as far as they were capable The Spanish Commander roughly answer'd 'em that he would not so receive 'em but cut 'em to pieces without Mercy unless they would discover the places whither their Masters were retreated the Indians replied they did not know however they
this River to penetrate farther into the Country and to ravage and spoil it He massacred abundance of People in his way laid the Country waste with Fire and Sword and ruin'd them by whole Families while they were peaceably enjoying themselves in their Houses and thought of nothing less But after all this mischief himself perish'd miserably and his Souldiers quarrel'd and destroy'd one another They that afterwards came into this Country succeeded him in his Cruelties and are still laying it waste they commit abundance of Massacres and Robberies there with Impunity and seem to undertake their long Voyages and Journeys on purpose to precipitate an infinite number of Souls into Hell that were redeem'd by the Blood of the Son of God Of the Kingdom of Vençuela IN the year 1526 the King of Spain abus'd by the Artifices of some ill-designing People who made use of a thousand fetches and excuses to conceal from him the great Devastations the Spaniards had made in the new World to the great prejudice of the Glory of God the Christian Religion and the Salvation of the poor Indians gave the Government of the Kingdom of Vençuela which is bigger than all Spain to several Flemish Merchants with full Jurisdiction and Power to do what they pleas'd there and to dispose of the Country as they thought convenient They accordingly enter'd it with three hundred Men and found the People there to be of a meek tractable and peaceful Disposition as indeed the Indians generally are when left to their natural Temper and not enrag'd by the Abuses so often offer'd ' em These were still more brutish and cruel than those Spaniards of whom we have been hitherto speaking They exceeded Tygers Wolves and Lions in Barbarity when they saw themselves Masters of this great Kingdom in possession of it and the Jurisdiction of it entirely put into their hands they thought they had ample liberty to do there whatever they pleas'd and that they might satisfy their Covetousness at any rate and by all the methods they could imagine tho never so unjust They took no care but how to heap up vast Treasures of Gold and Silver and the abominable means they us'd to this end shew'd they had no regard either to God or their Prince nay they seem'd to have utterly forgotten that themselves were Men having put on such an inhuman and savage Fierceness or to come yet nearer to their true Character they appear'd like so many Devils in the shape of Men. They ran through these rich and pleasant Provinces and instantly laid the Country waste for forty Leagues together wherein were fruitful Vallies of a prodigious extent and Towns and Villages stor'd with great quantities of Gold The destruction they made was so general that scarce a Man was left to carry the News of the Cruelties they exercised in this Kingdom to other Provinces none but those that hid themselves in Caves and Holes of the Earth could escape the Sword of these furious and inhuman Creatures They invented new kinds of Punishments wherewith to torment 'em to force 'em to part with their Gold by discovering the places where they had hid it After this manner they destroy'd three or four Millions of People The Instances of three or four Facts will sufficiently discover how these Brutes behav'd themselves in this Kingdom One of the first things they did was to seize him whom they look'd upon as the Soveraign Prince of the whole Kingdom they loaded him with Irons to get the more Gold out of him they endeavour'd by the Tortures to which they put him to make him discover the places where he had secur'd his Treasures but he had the good fortune to escape their hands and fly into the Mountains His Subjects surrounded him and hid him in the Woods but their number was too great to be long conceal'd so that the Spaniards pursued 'em with Swords in their hands and made a dreadful Massacre among 'em others of them they took alive and sold for Slaves Before the Spaniards had took their King Prisoner they were receiv'd in all these Provinces with singing dancing and all the highest demonstrations of Joy as if come to bring Peace and Plenty with 'em into the Country They frankly and voluntarily gave 'em immense Sums of Gold and Silver for which all the Compensation they had was to be run through and cut with Lances and Swords and massacred without pity One day when they came out to meet the Spaniards to do 'em the more honour the Flemish Commander having order'd a great number of 'em to assemble together in a certain House cut 'em all in pieces immediately only some of the poor Wretches got upon the Beams to avoid the fury of the Souldiers upon which this Commander caus'd the House to be fir'd and destroy'd them in the Flames The whole Country was soon turn'd into a Desert for all that escap'd the Souldiers Rage retir'd into the Mountains The Spaniards after this pass'd into a vast Province upon the Confines of that of St. Martha where they found the Natives following their ordinary business in profound Peace All the while they continued here they liv'd at the charge of the Indians who serv'd 'em with as much Affection and Diligence as if they had ow'd their Lives to 'em nay they bore with their troublesom Humors and continually receiv'd ill Treatment from 'em with incredible Patience The Indians moreover to qualify their ill Temper brought 'em a prodigious quantity of Gold and many other things of great value Yet these Tyrants when upon the point of leaving 'em instead of gratefully acknowledging all the good Offices they had receiv'd of 'em resolv'd to put 'em all to the Sword The Flemish General who has since been suppos'd to be a Heretick because he never went to Mass himself nor suffer'd others to go commanded his Men to take all the Indians with their Wives and Children and put 'em into some very large place capable of containing 'em all and then to declare to 'em that if they had a mind to redeem their Liberty with that of their Wives and Children they must necessarily lay down a certain Sum which this unjust Governor had tax'd 'em according to his own capricious Humour and to urge 'em the more to answer his Requirement he barbarously prohibited his Men to give any Victuals to these poor Creatures till each of 'em had paid the Sum impos'd on him Many of 'em sent to their Houses for the Sum demanded being willing to do what they could to redeem their Liberty and to have leave to go seek something to eat Yet they were no sooner got out of the Clutches of this covetous Governor but he instantly sent Soldiers to take 'em again and subject 'em to the same Confinement from which they had ransom'd themselves with so much difficulty so that they dy'd in this Captivity with Hunger and Thirst unless they speedily bought their Liberty again which they forc'd 'em
this Mountain they fell on the poor Indians who were naked and disarm'd with a fury like that of Wolves and Lions when they set upon a flock of Sheep to devour 'em till at length they were so spent and fatigu'd meerly with slaughtering these poor Creatures that they were forc'd to give over a while to take breath after which they renew'd this Massacre with more vigour And to cut short their bloody work they threw down the greatest part of these Indians headlong from the top of the Mountain which was very high It has been depos'd by those that were Eye-witnesses of this Tragedy that they forc'd above 700 of these poor Indians all together down this Precipice so that they look'd like a Cloud as they fell they were all dash'd in pieces by this dreadful fall and died miserably The Spaniards push'd on this barbarous Expedition to the utmost for they made a diligent search in all the remote Corners of the Mountain and gave no quarter to any they found those they could catch were either cut to pieces or after many wounds cast down from the top of the Mountain Nor did these Cruelties satisfy 'em but they shut up divers Indians both Men and Women whom they had reserv'd for Slaves in a house cover'd with straw which they set on fire and so consum'd ' em They likewise went to the City of Cola where they took abundance of People with about 15 or 20 of their Great Men they expos'd these to the fury of their Dogs which devour'd 'em having first cut off the hands and feet both of Men and Women and fix'd these sad Spoils on Poles that they might be obvious to the view of all and that the dreadful sight might cast terror and amazement in the minds of all that surviv'd The Ravage and Cruelties these bloody-minded Men exercised in this new Kingdom of Grenada are so great that if the King of Spain dos not apply a speedy remedy and set bounds to their excessive Avarice and insatiable thirst of Gold that whole Kingdom will soon be destroy'd and the Land lie uncultivated and unimprov'd for want of Inhabitants In the space of 2 or 3 years since this Kingdom has been discover'd they have without the fear of God or Man put the Inhabitants to death without any emotion or pity to see so much human blood pour'd out There are now scarce any People to be found there after all these Massacres There are divers fine large Provinces near New Grenada this Country is called Popoyan and Cali and is above 50 leagues in extent which they also have ruined and made as desolate as the former Here they have so slaughter'd the people that this once populous Country is now quite destitute of Inhabitants Those that come from thence relate such terrible things of the Spaniards proceedings there that one can't hear their sad Stories without being pierc'd with trouble and compassion in a very sensible manner In these Provinces they have ruin'd many fine Cities from one end to t'other so that they now lie buried in their own Ashes there are scarce any of the ruins of those Cities to be seen which once contain'd above 2000 Houses In a word this Country which was full of Villages Towns and Cities for the space of 50 leagues is now so bare that there 's scarce any token remaining to signifie there ever were any such buildings Some of the Spaniards came from Peru into New Grenada and Popoyan through the Province of Quitonia others of 'em came to Cali by the way of Carthagena and Vraba but all join'd together to carry on the same design spoiling a Country of 600 leagues in extent of all its Riches and extirpating all the Inhabitants after they had plunder'd ' em When this cruel War was ended the Spaniards took some of the Indians whom they had reserved for Slaves into their service and caus'd the heads of several of their Companions to be cut off in their sight to terrify 'em telling 'em they must all expect to undergo the same fate if they did not serve 'em faithfully By the recital of such barbarous Actions as these the Reader may easily imagin how the Spaniards behave themselves towards the Indians in the several parts of America They feed their fierce Dogs with human flesh on purpose to accustom 'em to tear Men in pieces and devour ' em They carry these Dogs with 'em wherever they go and barbarously murder the poor Indians to feed these savage Curs with their flesh They 'l say one to another Give me a quarter of that Indian to make my Dog a feast and when I kill one I 'll pay you again They commonly hunt in the morning with these Dogs and when ask'd by their fellows what luck they have had they answer according to their success Sometimes one will say I am content my Dogs have kill'd about a score of 'em so that one would think they were speaking of Wolves or wild Boars Can any thing be imagin'd that exceeds such horrible Cruelty as this And all these Barbarities have been prov'd and averred by strict Examinations made and produc'd before the Council of the Indies But I shall add no more till I shall receive farther information of their other Villanies which may be expected to be yet greater than those I have mention'd if greater can possibly be committed And that which is most deplorable is that the Spaniards take no care to speak to these people of the Mysteries of our Religion nor seem to regard 'em any more than Dogs or wild Beasts Nay they have forbidden the Monks and Missionaries to instruct 'em whom they have even persecuted and laid a thousand Obstructions in their way to hinder 'em from preaching the Gospel to these poor Creatures who passionately desired it and all because they thought the Conversion of these People would be an Obstacle to their covetous Designs and hinder 'em from getting all the Gold they desir'd So that these miserable people have been industriously kept in their former ignorance and know no other God than those of Wood Stone or Copper unless it be the People of New Spain which is but a small part of America where the Monks have exercised their Function and have been suffer'd to display their Zeal with more freedom In the other Provinces the Indians perish without Baptism or any other Sacrament and no one gives himself the trouble to instruct 'em as will farther appear by an authentick Letter from a Bishop of this Country who expresses himself in these Terms I Frier Bartholomew de Las-Casas Monk of the Order of St. Dominique having signified my desire to be recall'd from the Indies had leave to come over to the Court of Spain to give an account of the deplorable Condition of the Indians To this I have been mov'd by the Zeal with which God has inspir'd me for Souls redeem'd by his Blood My earnest desire is that they may know their Creator
And God will undoubtedly make all Spain feel the Effects of his Wrath in punishing such Crimes as these since the whole Scripture is full of Threatnings and plain Instances of the Judgments of God on such as have been accessory to the Sins of others by permitting them Most Illustrious and Mighty Prince The Royal Council for the Indies animated with a sincere Zeal for the Glory of God and your Majesty's Honour desir'd me a few days ago to write to your Majesty all that I had told you viva voce before and to explain to you what Right the Kings of Spain have to those Kingdoms in the Indies and the rather because some who are uneasy to see the liberty your Majesty is pleas'd to give me in conversing with your Royal Person about these Affairs to engage you to regulate those Disorders committed in America have declar'd against my Sentiments with a great deal of heat and animosity They say the Zeal with which I oppose the Violence and Injustice of the Spaniards and these I 'm resolv'd to oppose as long as it pleases God to continue my life prompts men to call in question the Title the King of Spain pretends to have to the New World However I have perform'd what the Council demanded of me and drawn up thirty Propositions without giving my self the trouble of proving them at large partly because they are all certain and evident and partly because I was much urg'd to dispatch the business and to send them to your Majesty which I have accomplish'd in the fear of God and according to the dictates of my Conscience with a strict regard to Truth Since the desire I have of being serviceable to God daily increases I thought my self oblig'd to refute the Impostures and Calumnies of some ill-designing Persons who wilfully shut their eyes against the Truth because 't is directly opposite to the Designs and Projects they have form'd They flatter themselves that under the false pretext of serving the Kings of Spain who are ordinarily of a sweet and benign temper and ready to judg of others by the good Sentiments they find in themselves I say they flatter themselves that they shall still be able to impose on 'em and bear a sufficient sway in their minds to bring 'em into the snares they have laid for ' em It was the complaint of Ahasuerus in the History of Esther that corrupt and vicious Subjects alter'd the good disposition of Princes and betray'd 'em into Excesses that occasion'd the ruin of whole Kingdoms and their Kings together 'T is for this reason Great Sir I have briefly drawn up these Propositions to set this matter before you in a clear light This I have done to discharge my own Conscience and that I might the better answer the Obligations of that Ministry wherewith God has entrusted me I find my self growing old being advanc'd to the 50 th year of my age and the great acquaintance I have had with the Affairs of America has furnish'd me with a very distinct knowledg of 'em so that my circumstances render me in some respects more capable than others of giving proper Advice to those that are propos'd for the Government of America that they may know how to put a period to its Miseries for I have no other intention or desire in this matter than that of suppressing the Injustice and Cruelty that has so long harass'd the Inhabitants of the New World They that endeavour to cross my good Design with the greatest warmth and deck themselves with a false appearace of zeal and affection to your Majesty tho at the bottom they have no regard either to truth or justice take care to hide their Designs under the specious colour of promoting your Majesty's Service and Interest and of establishing your Majestiy's Right and Title to America while indeed all they do is directly contrary to your Majesty's Service whether in respect of Spirituals or Temporals And I believe all intelligent Christians that have a true zeal for their Religion will be of this opinion when I have made the Errors and Extravagancies of those that oppose my Sentiments appear for these Gentlemen hand over head maintain that the Kings of Spain have a Right to found and establish themselves a Title to the Government of America by force of Arms after the same manner that Nimrod who was the first mighty Hunter as the Scripture expresly observes and first began to tyrannize over Men laid the foundation of his Dominion or as Alexander the Great and the antient Romans extended the bounds of their Empire or just as the Turks to this day oppress the Christians and invade their Territories All the World may easily perceive that they who reason thus are ignorant of the true Interest of the King of Spain and shamefully violate all the Rules of Justice To prove what they advance they add new Errors to their first Extravagancies till they shew by the wretched Maxims they expose that they have neither Honor nor Christianity For it often falls out that while they who wander from the Tract of Truth and Virtue go about to excuse the Errors they have made they fall into other Mistakes that are still more gross and dangerous There are others of 'em who produce Titles that appear to be somewhat better founded and alledg Arguments that seem more probable and honest These say we may justly take possession of the Indies and subdue the People because we have a greater stock of Prudence and Wisdom than other Nations and because our Country is nearer to the Indies than many others But 't is easy to see that none of these Reasons are concluding having no solid Foundation to support ' em That your Majesty may the better comprehend the force of the Reasons that have been produc'd before you and more easily distinguish what is agreeable to the Rules of Equity from what is contrary to 'em and discern your faithful Servants from such as mind nothing but their own Interest I shall come my self and viva voce explain to your Majesty the principal Points on which my Judgment is founded In the mean time I send your Majesty an Abstract of my Propositions which your Majesty may cause to be translated into Latin if you think meet that they may be printed both in the Latin and Spanish Tongues or if your Majesty don't see good to make 'em publick 't will be no great matter I Proposition The Pope of Rome Canonically elected to be the Vicar of Jesus Christ and the Successor of St. Peter hath received his Authority and Power from Christ himself and this Power extends over all Men whether Believers or Infidels in matters appertaining to Salvation and the way of eternal Life But it is to be observ'd that he ought to exercise this Power toward Infidels that never enter'd into the Church by Baptism nor never heard of Jesus Christ and the Catholic Faith in a different manner from what he does
Kingdom of Spain prescribe that nothing be determin'd in prejudice of a Man's Liberty in doubtful things nor the least force or constraint put upon men that are free And when their consent to any thing is violently extorted it ought not to be imputed to 'em because 't is an infringement of the Law of Nature If 't is unlawful to seize on the Goods of Men that are free without cause much more is it to offer violence to their Persons and to inslave 'em which is the greatest Injury they can receive next to the loss of Life it self If a Father can't choose himself another Heir without the consent of his Son who has a natural Title either to the whole or at least a 4 th part of his Father's Estate much less may inferior Lords pretend to a right of appropriating the Kings Subjects to themselves unless his Majesty consent by abandoning his own Right which is founded on the voluntary Agreement of his Subjects If the current Mony of the Kingdom can't be alter'd without the People's consent because the alteration may be attended with great Inconveniences much less can the People themselves be taken from the Dominion of the King against their Will and subjected to the absolute Power of private Masters because this forc'd Change is a Violation of their Liberty It must be farther added that such as are tributary to your Majesty can't pass under the Jurisdiction of another Person which would be more uneasy and disadvantageous to 'em and under which they would perhaps be condemn'd to a more servile and laborious Course of life How much more ought they who enjoy an entire liberty under any Prince's Government to be preserv'd in the possession of their Privileges and how injurious would it be to deliver 'em up as Vassals to particular Lords who would probably abuse their Authority and treat their Persons with violence as well as greatly prejudice 'em in their Estates 'T is most injurious both to the Lives and Liberties of Men to depend on divers Lords and Masters because their Service and Labors multiply according to the number of those under whose jurisdiction they are And 't is to be presum'd they will not be all alike just and equitable 'T is very much the Interest of Princes not to suffer the number of their Subjects to be diminish'd because it will deprive 'em of much of the advantage and service they may reasonably expect from ' em And 't is as much the Interest of Subjects not to suffer themselves to be transfer'd from the Dominion of the Prince under which they have always liv'd to that of an inferior Master Those that know the difference between the Government of Kings and that of particular Lords which is usually hard and severe will do any thing to be secure from the latter while they are well pleas'd with the former and readily dispose themselves to bear a Yoke that appears so much easier and lighter than the other And this is the reason why the generality of Men do all they can to avoid falling under the dominion of private Men to the prejudice of that Royal Jurisdiction to which they have been continually accustom'd And this Sentiment is justified by the suffrage of all wise Men and favor'd by all just Laws 'T is a general Rule that a Prince can do nothing that may cause any considerable damage to his Subjects unless they freely give their own consent And this your Majesty every day observes wherein you follow the steps of your Ancestors who to avoid doing any thing contrary to the rules of Justice and Equity frequently us'd to assemble their Council and to take their advice who were Persons of great Wisdom and Sense and to make a due improvement of it In the present affair it would be injurious to the Indians to give 'em up to the Spaniards as their Vassals because they use 'em so barbarously and reduce 'em to the utmost degree of Servitude And such a matter as this is not to be concluded without proposing it to the Indians and obtaining their consent For thus to change their condition without consulting 'em were to put a treacherous trick upon 'em against the Laws of Nature Justice and Charity because this subjection would be to a severe and tyrannical Power as is evident by what the Indians have hitherto met with from the Spaniards Beside such an alteration would be contrary to the Will and Law of God because it would hinder the progress of the Catholic Faith and inspire the Indians with hatred to the Gospel and would tend to the general destruction of those People whom your Majesty is bound to preserve and protect This you owe 'em from a motive of Charity and Zeal for the good of your Neighbor as you are a Christian Prince and moreover by the Obligation of your Office as the Vice-gerent of Jesus Christ From all the Reasons alledg'd it may well be concluded that if even the Indians themselves would voluntarily consent to be inslav'd and utterly renounce their Liberty yet this consent of theirs would be void and null of it self because a thing every way so mischievous ought by no means to be tolerated Your Majesty would be oblig'd by the Law of God to hinder 'em from ruining themselves in such a manner because the Tyranny the Spaniards exercise over 'em is so great that many of the Indians have fallen into utter despair under their unsufferable Impositions and chosen rather to stab or poison themselves than to pine away gradually under their miserable Bondage Others have fled into the Mountains where they have become a Prey to Tigers and Lions others have died merely with Sorrow and Anguish when they found they were condemn'd to a Life so full of Misery and Toil without any hope of respit or mitigation I knew a Spaniards who was so famous for his Cruelty that above two hundred People kill'd themselves some one way and some another to avoid his Barbarities in Hispaniola A like number underwent the same fate in the Isle of Cuba where this Tyrant exercis'd his Violence and Rapine But tho the common Interest of all Nations in the World ought to prevent their Kings from alienating them from their own Dominion to make 'em the Vassals and Subjects of private Men and tho this is founded on natural Reason and Justice yet sometimes in pressing Exigencies Princes may alienate a part of their Territories to extricate themselves out of some great and perplexing difficulty from which they cannot otherwise get free For instance if they have no other course to take for the defence of the Commonwealth it seems lawful for 'em to exchange the Jurisdiction they have over their Subjects provided they some way indemnify 'em or repair any damage this exchange may occasion But 't would be impossible to indemnify the Indians if they should be left to the Dominion of the Spaniards who bring upon 'em inexpressible Calamities and Mischiefs that can
were destroy'd after the same manner and he would in a short time have unpeopled the whole Island if Death which took him out of the way very happily for those poor Wretches had not shelter'd 'em from his Cruelties I saw with with my own Eyes above six thousand Children die in the space of three or four Months their Parents being forc'd to abandon 'em being condemn'd to the Mines After this the Spaniards took up a Resolution to pursue those Indians that were retir'd into the Mountains and massacred multitudes of 'em so that this Island was depopulated and laid waste in a very little time And 't is a most lamentable Spectacle to see so fine a Country thus miserably ruin'd and unpeopled Of the Continent IN the Year 1514 a merciless Governor destitute of the least sentiment of Pity or Humanity who was deservedly accounted a barbarous Tyrant and cruel Instrument of the Wrath of God pierc'd into the Continent being follow'd by a great many Spaniards all animated with the Spirit and pursuing the Designs of their Leader Tho some of his stamp had enter'd the Continent before him and had kill'd a great many People yet they had only exercis'd their Robberies and Cruelties on the Sea-Coasts But he of whom I am now speaking surpass'd all his Predecessors in Cruelty and Impiety He was not content to ravage the Sea-Coasts but laid waste great Kingdoms and vast Countries and destroy'd an infinite number of Indians in the gross Darkness of their Idolatry He run through above fifty Leagues of the finest Country in the World and carried Desolation with him where-ever he went ruining in a little time the most pleasant and fruitful Country in the West-Indies There were before the Arrival of this Tyrant abundance of Villages Towns and Cities that excell'd those of all the neighbouring Countries This Country abounds more in Gold than any yet discover'd The immense Riches that have fill'd Spain since she has traded to the Indies have been chiefly drawn out of the Mines of the Country of which I am now speaking The Governor of this new World invented various kinds of Torments to constrain the Inhabitants to give him all the Gold they had heap'd together In one Progress which some of his Captains made by his Order to pillage and rob the People of their Riches they put above forty thousand of 'em to the Sword others they burnt others they expos'd to be devour'd by Dogs and the rest they destroy'd with divers other kinds of cruel Punishments The wretched Ignorance of those that have been sent to govern the Indies has occasion'd a great many Mischiefs and Disorders and hinder'd the Conversion of the Indians for what they endeavour'd to perswade 'em by their Words was contradicted by their Actions and the Sentiments of their Minds were no ways conformable to the Pretensions of their Tongues They commanded the Indians to embrace the Christian Religion upon pain of Death they menac'd 'em with cruel Slavery or the most exquisite Tortures to force 'em to turn Christians or to swear Allegiance to the King of Spain As if the Son of God who dy'd for the Redemption of Men had ordain'd those whom he sent to preach the Gospel and to declare the Kingdom of God to constrain People that liv'd peaceably in their own Country to make profession of his Doctrine on pain of being plunder'd of their Goods of being separated from their Wives and Children of losing their Liberty and of being condemn'd to a cruel Death without having ever been instructed in the Maxims and Principles of our Religion And the poor Creatures must be oblig'd to render an exact Obedience to a King they had never seen or heard of till they were inform'd of him by these Messengers of his that treated 'em so inhumanly This bloody and impious Governor urg'd with the insatiable desire of heaping up Treasure pillaged the Indians that dwelt both in the Villages and Cities with Impunity while they little thought of securing themselves against his Robberies He order'd his Souldiers to go privately to the places where they suspected any Gold was to be found and to declare his Orders to the Inhabitants of this new World after the following manner Caciques and Indians of this Continent we are come to declare to you that there is but one God one Pope and one King of Spain who is Lord and Master of the Country you inhabit we therefore require you to come immediately and take the Oath of Allegiance to him After such kind of Preambles as these they would choose the Night to fall suddenly upon these poor Wretches when laid fast asleep without having taken any measures to secure themselves from the Artifices of their Enemies who would set fire to their Houses which being thatch'd with Reeds and Straw were burnt to Ashes in an instant The Women and Children were devour'd by the Flames almost before they had time to consider where they were They massacred such as made a shift to escape the Fire or kept 'em for Slaves they used Tortures to force 'em to tell where they had hid their Gold They printed Marks on their Bodies with red hot Branding-irons and after all these Cruelties us'd their utmost diligence to make a strict search for the Gold of these miserable People of which they got vast Quantities together besides Pearls and Diamonds which the Indians gave 'em to avoid their Fury All the Spaniards who had any Office or Place of Trust committed the same Rapine every one sent as many Souldiers as he could to make their Progresses and ravage all the Country The first Bishop that was sent into America imitated the Conduct of these covetous Governors and made use of his Servants to procure himself a share of the Spoil The Spaniards in a little time carried away above three Millions out of this Kingdom of which vast Sum the King of Spain had scarce 3000 Crowns for his share Here were above 800000 People slaughter'd and the succeeding Governors continued the like Massacres till they had destroy'd the rest of the Natives I must not pass over in silence one Action committed in this Country by the Governor of whom I have been speaking A Cacique whether voluntarily or out of fear I know not gave him the weight of 9000 Crowns in Gold This great Sum not contenting the Spaniards they tied this unhappy Prince to a Stake and setting fire to his Feet endeavour'd by this means to extort a greater quantity from him This Torment being intolerable to him he gave 'em the weight of 3000 Crowns of Gold more which he had reserv'd upon this they renew'd their Tortures to get still more out of him but whether he had no more to give 'em or whether he was resolv'd they should exact no more of him he expir'd amidst their Tortures They put to death many of the most considerable Persons of this Kingdom after the same cruel manner A Company of Spaniards happening to light on
after they found some of them among the Carcases all cover'd with Wounds and Blood that had been left for dead these cry'd for Mercy and beg'd they might be suffer'd to live but these bloody Men were not at all soften'd by their Groans and Tears and the submissive manner in which they ask'd their Lives but cut 'em in pieces upon the spot with a kind of nameless Cruelty Above a hundred of the principal Indians of this place were put in Irons and kept alive as yet But the Commander of the Spaniards order'd Stakes to be fix'd in the Ground and these unhappy People to be fasten'd to 'em and burnt The King of the Country happen'd to make his Escape and retir'd into a Temple with thirty or forty attending him hoping to find Sanctuary there Here he defended himself for a whole day But the Spaniards who never gave Quarter to any one whom they found in Arms set fire to the Temple and burnt all that were in it They cry'd out of the midst of the Flames O vile and cruel Men what hurt have we done you that you should kill us after this manner Be gone be gone to Mexico where our King Monteçuma will punish you according to your deserts 'T is said the Spanish Commander was at play during this Tragedy and that when the Flames had quite consum'd these poor Indians in a Transport of barbarous Joy shall I say or Fury he utter'd these words Nero says he beholding from Mount Tarpeius the Flames that laid Rome in Ashes heard the Cries of his Citizens without any Emotion of Compassion The Spaniards made another great Massacre in the City of Tepeaca which is a yet finer and larger City than the former and comprehends in it a greater number of Houses Here they kill'd a multitude of the Inhabitants with their Lances and Swords They afterwards went to Mexico where King Monteçuma accompanied with his Nobles and those of the most distinguished Rank in his Court entertain'd the Spaniards with all sorts of Divertisements to testify how mightily they were pleas'd with their Arrival The King's Brother came to meet 'em with a splendid Retinue he made 'em noble Presents in Gold and Silver and gave 'em rich Stuffs painted with divers Colours the King himself receiv'd 'em at the entrance of the City with all his Court being carried upon a Golden Frame or Chair of State and conducted 'em to the Palace that was provided for ' em But the same day they seiz'd this unfortunate Prince who thought of nothing less and posted fourscore Souldiers to guard him having loaded him with a heavy Chain This Action put all the Indians in a Consternation and Fear But to augment their Terror they contriv'd to signalize their Cruelty by some memorable Action All the Nobility of the City was engag'd in representing Plays and Shows and in dancing round the place where their King was imprison'd to allay the Troubles of his Mind during his Captivity in these Plays they expos'd to view all their Riches and Magnificence These were the Demonstrations of their Joy and of the desire they had to please the Spaniards The Nobles and Princes of the Blood according to their several degrees were employ'd in these Plays and Dances as I have said round about their Prince's Prison so that there were about the Palace two thousands young Men that were the very flower of the whole Kingdom and the Pride and Glory of the Court of King Monteçuma While they were thus engag'd the Commander of the Spaniards with one of his Troops came to fall upon ' em He had sent the rest of his Souldiers into the other quarters of the City where the People were using the like Divertisements ordering 'em to seem to join in with these Indian Sports as if they were mightily pleas'd with 'em but withal giving 'em a word to put these Dancers at a certain time to the Sword Accordingly they fell upon 'em pronouncing the word St. James which was the Signal for massacring these poor naked Indians that were in no condition to defend themselves from Souldiers arm'd with Swords and Lances with these they made large Wounds in the tender Bodies of the young Noblemen of Mexico who were all massacred and not so much as one of 'em escap'd The Indians in the other parts of the City were seiz'd with so much Horror and Trouble that they knew not where to seek for shelter to secure themselves from the fury of these Cut-throats whom they loaded with a thousand Curses Since this time they don't forget to celebrate the memory of this barbarous Action with their Sighs and Tears and have put this day in the Rank of their most unfortunate ones since in it they lost in a moment the most illustrious Nobility of the whole Kingdom The Indians who had suffer'd the Imprisonment of their King with so much patience hearing of the Massacre of so many young Noblemen could not but express their Detestation of this so bloody and wicked a Fact and took up Arms to revenge themselves and tho Monteçuma had forbidden 'em to offer the Spaniards any Violence they attack'd 'em vigorously and kill'd divers of 'em and the rest were constrained to retreat The Spaniards put a Dagger to their Prince's Breast and shew'd him in this posture to his Subjects through a Window hoping the sight of it would oblige 'em to lay down their Arms which the Prince himself likewise commanded them to do but they were too much provok'd now to obey even his Orders They chose one to head 'em and having put all their Troops under his Command attack'd the Spaniards so furiously and fought with so much obstinacy that these concluding they were not able to withstand 'em left the City and retreated in the middle of the night which the Indians perceiving pursu'd 'em and kill'd a great number of 'em as they pass'd the Rivers However the Spaniards return'd soon after with a greater Strength and assaulted and took the City in which they made a horrible slaughter and burnt those Indians that were of greatest Note After they had committed all this Cruelty and Spoil in the City of Mexico they carried Desolation with them into the Province of Panuco which is not above twenty Leagues distant from it and here exercised their ordinary Barbarity This Province was mightily stock'd with People but since the arrival of the Spaniards the greatest part of 'em has been cut off The Province of Tute-peca and that of Colima underwent the same Fate each of which Provinces is as big as the Kingdoms of Leon and Castile 'T is to be observ'd that the Spaniards invaded these Provinces only to plunder and inslave the Inhabitants One of the first things they did was to oblige 'em to take the Oath of Allegiance to the King of Spain which if they refus'd to do they were presently massacred or made Slaves They declar'd those of 'em Rebels who came not to meet the Spaniards and
they gave 'em and their Children too were forc'd to leave these by the way by which means a prodigious number of Children perish'd A Spaniard attempting to ravish a Virgin in the presence of her Mother the Mother did what she could to hinder him upon which to prevent her from farther opposing his brutish design he drew his Sword and cut off her Arms and afterwards kill'd her Daughter because she would by no means consent to his filthy Desires but resisted him with a virtuous Indignation and Courage to her last breath Four thousand and five hundred of these poor Indians were branded with a hot Iron by the Spaniards who mark'd 'em thus for Slaves tho they were born free and independent The very Children as well as those that were grown to maturity suffer'd this Punishment and Infamy They pretended they had right to make a great number of 'em Slaves to defray the Charge of their long Travels and that they might lawfully make these poor Creatures endure all sorts of Torments to force 'em to declare where they had hid their Gold Some of 'em they burnt others were torn in pieces by hungry Dogs they cut off the Feet Hands Arms Tongues and sometimes the Heads of others to terrify the rest by these sad Spectacles that they might oblige 'em the more easily to submit to Slavery or to shew 'em the places where they had secur'd their Treasure And all these things were acted with the knowledg and consent of the Governor who would sometimes order more Blows to be given 'em when they were beat or whip'd to compleat their Misery Fourscore Towns and Villages at least were burnt in the Kingdom of Xalisco Which tragical sight together with all the various Cruelties they suffer'd every day so provok'd the Indians that they arm'd themselves and fell upon the Spaniards and kill'd some of 'em after which Expedition they fled up into the Mountains but at length were massacred in this place of Refuge by other Spaniards who made Excursions through these Provinces to lay 'em waste They put all of 'em to the Sword who made any offer to defend themselves so that this place became a horrible scene of Blood And there is scarce any Remnant of this once numerous People left The Spaniards were certainly blinded harden'd and abandon'd by the Almighty that they made no Reflection on the Laws of God or Men which all forbid the exercise of such Violence as they have been guilty of in America They had no just occasion given 'em to drive the Inhabitants of those Provinces from their Native Country by force of Arms and to massacre 'em so barbarously they did not consider how unjust and criminal these Outrages were and how contrary it was to all the Laws of Nations for them to treat those who had never injur'd 'em with so much Cruelty They pretend the Wars they have made against these People are just and lawful that God hath left 'em to their Mercy and that they have right to make such Conquests as these and to destroy all these Nations So that it seems they would fain make God himself Partner with 'em in their Tyranny and Wickedness and one may well apply the words of the Prophet Zechariah to 'em Feed the flock of the slaughter whose Possessors slay them and hold themselves not guilty and they that sell them say Blessed be the Lord for I am rich and their own Shepherds pity them not Chap. 11. 4 5. Of the Kingdom of Yucatan A Very profligate Person who had neither Honour nor Conscience was made Governor of the Kingdom of Yucatan in the year 1526 which Dignity he procur'd by his Lies and Artifices and the false accounts of Matters which he sent to the King of Spain A method which other Tyrants have hitherto likewise follow'd to obtain places of Trust For under the umbrage of the Title of Governor which seems to give some Dignity and Authority to all they do they take the liberty to exercise their Robberies and Violences with Impunity The Kingdom of Yucatan contain'd a prodigious number of People the Air of this Country is very temperate and pleasant it has great plenty of Fruits and all the Necessaries of Life it exceeds Mexico it self in Fertility There is more Wax and Honey found in this than in any other part of America that has been yet discover'd This Kingdom is 300 Leagues in compass The Inhabitants of it are more polite more civiliz'd and better disciplin'd in Morals and in what belongs to the good order of Societies than the rest of the Indians There is a remarkable Prudence and Justness of Mind in them which is not to be found in others These natural Endowments without doubt ought to have encouraged Christians to take the pains to instruct 'em in the knowledg of the true God and they seem'd to have no small disposition to receive the Maxims of the Catholick Religion The Spaniards might have built great and flourishing Cities in so pleasant and commodious a Country where they might have liv'd in the midst of Pleasure and Plenty as it were in another Earthly Paradise but their Stupidity their Avarice and the enormous Crimes they have committed in America have render'd 'em unworthy of these Advantages They attack'd these poor Indians who liv'd in profound Peace and Security with the utmost Violence of a cruel War and massacred a prodigious number of 'em tho the number of the Spaniards was but three hundred This Country produces no Gold if the Spaniards could have found any Mines there they would have condemn'd the Indians to 'em who must have perish'd with Hunger and Hardship These covetous Wretches esteem'd Gold more than Souls which were purchas'd by the Blood of Jesus Christ they made Slaves of those whom they sav'd alive and fill'd the Ships they had brought to the Coasts of this Kingdom with 'em and so exchang'd 'em for Wine Oil Vinegar salt Pork Horses and all other Necessaries They would give fifty or a hundred of the handsomest young Girls for a measure of Wine Oil or Vinegar and would sell a hundred or two of lusty well-made young Men at the same rate They swop'd a Prince's Son for a Cheese and a hundred Persons of Eminency for a Horse They continued in this Country till they heard of the Riches of Peru the News of which made 'em leave it immediately and thus their Persecutions ended in the Kingdom of Yucatan However before they went they committed all the Excesses and Disorders that can be imagin'd against both God and Men so that those three hundred Leagues of one of the finest Countries in the World that was very rich and full of People before their arrival were in a little time reduc'd to a vast Desert 'T is not easy to believe the Account of all the villanous Actions they committed in this Kingdom I 'll recite but two or three particular Facts They had prepar'd fierce Dogs which they kept hungry
to do by this barbarous usage So that many of 'em were taken and retaken thus three or four times and every time oblig'd to ransom themselves with great Sums Those that were not able to pay the Tax laid upon 'em continued in this cruel Prison till they pin'd away with Hunger and Misery Thus was this opulent Province that abounded with Gold made desolate in a very little time There was one pleasant and fertile Vale ravag'd by these Brutes which extended no less than forty Leagues they burnt a Town in it consisting of a thousand Houses After this resolving to advance farther into the Country to discover a new way to Peru they made use of a multitude of Indians in this Journey whom they loaded with Chains and their Baggage together those that fainted under their Burdens with weariness they kill'd upon the spot cutting of their heads and divided the Burdens of them that died among the Survivors If one could exactly describe all the Ravage and Massacres the Spaniards commited in this Province together with all the Towns they fir'd so deplorable a Story would fill every Reader with horror and almost surpass belief Many other Tyrants came afterward into this Province who follow'd the steps of the former in searching for Gold and other Treasure but they found the Country so burnt pillag'd and desolate tho it had heretofore been both very populous and fertile that they themselves could not but stand amaz'd to think what Cruelties the poor Indians had endur'd All these Violences were plainly prov'd by the Procurator of the Treasury of the Council of the West-Indies The Acts and Proceedings made in this Affair are yet preserv'd upon record yet not one of these Tyrants was ever put to death for the Injuries offer'd these poor Indians so that all the Process that was made against 'em prov'd to very little purpose Those Ministers of Justice that have been hitherto sent into the Indies have regarded nothing but their Interest and studied how to enrich themselves without taking the trouble to examin and punish the Crimes of these Tyrants who did so much mischief and committed so many Outrages on the poor Indians They content themselves to say in general that such and such have committed great Crimes and abus'd the Inhabitants of the New World that they have lessen'd the King's Revenues to such a degree But when they have made these loose and general Enquiries they go no farther Whereas more effectual Remedies ought to be used to stop the Course of all these Mischiefs There is not so much care taken as to evidence and verify these matters nor do they give their Acts and Proceedings all the Life and Authority they ought for to discharge their Duty faithfully to God and the King they should make such Tyrants as these restore all the Plunder they have so unjustly got And 't would be no difficult matter to prove that they carried out of this Kingdom of Vencuela above 3 Millions of Gold having utterly ruined the Country for 40 leagues together in the space of 17 years for so long they continued spoiling this noble and fruitful Region They have cheated the King of above 2 Millions of his Revenues nor can they ever be able to repair the damage they have done this delicious Country unless the many thousand People they have cruelly murder'd could be rais'd again from the dead What I am now speaking of only respects the King 's temporal Interest which they have so ill manag'd without saying any thing of their Blasphemies their Impieties and Outrages committed immediately against the Divine Majesty And who shall make reparation for the loss of so many Souls they have precipitated into Hell in not suffering the Missionaries to instruct ' em These are the Fruits of their detestable avarice and profanity As soon as ever they enter'd this Kingdom they several times loaded divers Ships with great numbers of Indians whom they carried into the Isle of St. Martha and sold for Slaves Great multitudes of these poor Creatures were likewise carried into Hispaniola Jamaica and the Isle of St. John to the number at least of a million of Men. The Royal Council has been sufficiently inform'd of all these Disorders and Cruelties but they are pleas'd to connive at 'em and are as willing to shut their Eyes and take no notice of all the Robberies and Villanies the Spaniards have committed on the Coasts of the Isle of St. Martha tho they might have easily hinder'd all this mischief if they had applied themselves to it 'T was the infamous Avarice of these Tyrants that induc'd 'em to take so many Indians to sell 'em for Slaves and the very same covetous humour and phrenzie has seiz'd all the Europeans that have hitherto set foot in America Their Custom has been to take the poor Indians out of their houses with their Wives and Children to load 'em with Chains to mark 'em like Sheep that they might distinguish 'em one from another and afterwards to sell 'em as if they had been born Slaves Of those Provinces of the Continent called Florida THREE merciless Tyrants have invaded these Provinces one after another since the year 1510 all animated with the same Spirit and mov'd by the same designs They all committed the same Outrages throughout this Country to put themselves by robbing and pillaging into a capacity of buying places of honour and profit far above their quality but God was pleas'd to punish 'em after a very signal manner for they all came to a miserable end they were buried in the ruins of those Houses which they had built with the Spoils of so many miserable People whom they had ruin'd and murder'd Thus were these Provinces left desolate These Brutes would doubtless have committed yet more Villanies had not the just Judgment of the Almighty shorten'd their days and punish'd 'em in this Country for the Massacres and Robberies they had committed in other parts of the Indies When they came into Florida they found it plentifully stor'd with People who were wise and well disciplin'd both in Civil Affairs and in Morals they immediately began to cast a Terror throughout the Country by I know not how many Massacres so that the poor Indians who had never known any thing like it were put into a mighty Consternation The Spaniards us'd 'em instead of Beasts of burden to carry their Arms Utensils and Provisions yet the Inhabitants of one great Town express'd abundance of Joy at their arrival entertain'd 'em with the best they had and furnish'd 'em with plenty of Provisions as long as they continued there they offer'd 'em 600 of their strongest men to carry their Baggage and look to their Horses Yet the Spanish General was so little touch'd with the courtesie of these People that he kill'd their Prince with a Lance that so he might be in a better condition to pillage them who little thought of such a bloody fact as this and other Cruelties with
which their barbarous Guests requited their kindnesses They with their Swords and Lances kill'd all the Inhabitants of another Town who stood upon their Guard and endeavour'd to defend themselves from the Hostilities of these Tyrants They put Men and Women great and small Masters and Servants all to the Sword without any respect either to Age Sex or Quality In another Village a Spanish Captain kill'd above 200 Indians he cut off the Lips and Noses of others and sent 'em away in this condition to terrify the rest of the Country by so horrible a sight These Cruelties hinder'd the success of the Missions of our Apostolick Men in the Indies who had no good reasons to produce to these poor Wretches to excuse such Barbarities as these One may easily guess by this Instance what love the Indians must have for the Catholicks and what confidence they can put in their Promises What Idea can they have of God when he is described to 'em as infinitly good and merciful What can they think of his Law which they are told is so holy and just when they see those that profess to observe it not scruple to commit all these Crimes Most of these cruel Villains perish'd miserably without the least contrition or repentance and tho God is infinitely gracious and merciful there is reason enough to fear they are condemn'd to eternal Torments Of the River de la Plata or Silver-River SEveral Spanish Captains have undertaken Voyages to the Silver-River since the year 1502. The Country upon it is of a vast extent and contains many great Kingdoms and noble Provinces The Inhabitants are a very rational and civil sort of People and live at a considerable distance from the other Indians which render'd it an easy matter to the Spaniards to molest 'em with impunity and to exercise all their wonted Rapine and Cruelty among ' em They every where carry with 'em the same design of enriching and making themselves great and powerful at the cost of these unhappy People whom they plunder of their Treasure as if it were the spoil of a just and lawful War Wherever they come they use the same ways and means to compass their design they torment and kill the People pillage and destroy the Country ruining whole Nations to possess themselves of their Gold and Silver On the Banks of the Silver-River they have destroy'd divers great Provinces and Kingdoms and cut the Throats of multitude of Indians treating 'em with all the Cruelties they could invent for when they were at this vast distance from Spain they did not much fear the King's Authority believing the remoteness of the place where they committed their Crimes would secure 'em from the danger of suffering for ' em This hope of impunity made 'em more barbarously cruel in this Country than in others so that they liv'd here after the most licentious manner imaginable without the least regard to Law or Justice However some of their Actions have been reported to the Council of the Indies A certain Governor one day commanded his Souldiers to enter into a Town and massacre all the Inhabitants if they should refuse to give 'em what provisions they wanted The Soldiers prompted by this Order and supported by the Authority of the Governor that sent 'em kill'd 5000 of these poor Creatures who looking on the Spaniards as their declared Enemies were not willing to trust 'em or to have any commerce with 'em and therefore hid themselves not so much to avoid giving 'em what they as'kd as to escape the points of their Swords The other Indians were so terrified by this slaughter that they readily offer'd themselves in great numbers to serve the Spaniards These Indians when they were one day call'd by the Governour to receive some orders from him I know not by what hap made some delay to present themselves before him upon which he commanded 'em to be deliver'd up to another Nation of Indians who were their mortal Enemies The poor Wretches as soon as they heard this cruel Sentence cried out most hideously entreating the Spaniards with tears in their Eyes rather to kill 'em outright with their Swords and Lances than to abandon 'em to the rage of their sworn Enemies Nor could they by any means be got out of the house were they were upon which the Spaniards hew'd 'em in pieces one after another while the poor Indians complain'd to 'em of their barbarity expressing themselves with hearts full of anguish and despair after this manner We came voluntarily to meet you to offer our Service to you and to shew you all the respect we could and all the return you make to our kindness is to murder us without pity Our Blood that is dash'd on every side upon the Walls of this House shall be an everlasting witness of your cruelty and cry for vengeance against you for the unjust death you make us suffer 'T is impossible to reflect on this Action without being mov'd both with horror and compassion Of the great Kingdoms and Provinces of Peru. A Spanish Commander with a great number of Soldiers enter'd these Kingdoms with the Title of Governour and with a Resolution to heap up a vast Treasure in a little time He had already given some proofs of his skill and capacity on the Continent and he every day perfected himself more and more in the Art of cutting of throats and pillaging He was naturally cruel without Faith Honour or Religion he knew no other God than Gold or Silver and therefore gave himself liberty to commit all sorts of Crimes to get these Metals any way in the world He did abundance of mischief in the large Provinces of Peru. 'T is not possible to represent to the life what Persecutions the Inhabitants of this rich Country underwent and what cruel sorts of death they were made to suffer to extort their Gold and Silver from ' em When this Governour first enter'd Peru he rifled divers Villages and took away prodigious quantities of Gold He then pass'd into an Island not far from this Kingdom which is very pleasant fruitful and populous The Prince of this Island together with the Inhabitants came out to meet the Spaniards and received 'em with great joy and civility But in the space of six months which time the Spaniards continued here they consum'd all the Corn and other Provisions they found in the Island After this they discover'd that the Indians had hid some Corn under ground to keep against a time of scarcity for the subsistence of their Wives and Children which they were constrain'd to leave to the discretion of the Spaniards who took possession of it as their own Property and hereby reduc'd these poor People to the utmost necessity Soon after this they left the Island but first kill'd a great many of the People and carried away the rest with 'em for Slaves Thus by the many Cruelties they committed this Island is quite depopulated From hence they went
wild Beasts and would be a great piece of service to the World to reduce 'em to any tolerable Disciplin But as for the Indians that tho they have some extravagant Customs but not any good Policy yet they ought not to be look'd upon as properly Barbarians seeing they are of a quite contrary disposition being meek civil and tractable in their Manners that they are a numerous People who have Cities and Laws and understand divers Arts that they have Princes over 'em and live under a kind of regulated Government that they not only punish Sins against Nature but have Laws that award capital Punishments for some Crimes of lesser consequence That their Policy has its particular Rules that upon all these Accounts their pretended Barbarity is not a sufficient Reason for any to declare War against 'em but would be a piece of visible Tyranny and Injustice and that this Course would be so far from promoting the Gospel that 't would be the very way to cut off all hope of establishing Christianity among them That therefore the best expedient would be to send Preachers into the Indies to endeavour to convince some of the principal Indians of the truth of our Religion and to make Treaties of Peace with 'em to favour the entrance of the Europeans into the Indies by such a gentle and peaceable Method as this that if any danger should arise after this we might build some Forts upon the Frontiers and so treat with 'em with the greater Security and make 'em gradually relish our Religion by setting 'em good Examples The Royal Council for the Indies having heard this Dispute between the Bishop of Chiapa and Dr. Sepulueda concerning the manner in which the Indians ought to be treated order'd the Bishop to draw up his Thoughts of this matter in Writing whereby they should be the better able to determin this question Whether they might lawfully inslave the Indians or were oblig'd to set at liberty all they had hitherto reduc'd to slavery In answer to their desire the Bishop farther explain'd his Sentiments after the following manner All the Indians taken in the Indies since the discovery of the New World to this day have bin unjustly inslav'd and the Spaniards who retain 'em in bondage against their wills can't do it with a good Conscience because they had no right to declare War against 'em for it follows by consequence they could not lawfully deprive 'em of their Liberty nor were they ever authoriz'd by their Prince to make War upon ' em Now there are but two Motives that can render any War just namely some righteous Cause or the Authority of one's Prince And what just motive then could the Spaniards have to declare War against the Indians who never did 'em any wrong nor ever gave 'em any disturbance They were people they had never seen they had never made any descent into any Country that belong'd to the Spaniards to spoil and ravage it they had never profess'd Christianity as the Moors of Africa had done who were Christian in the time of St. Augustin or as the Kingdom of Grenada the Empire of Constantinople and the Kingdom of Jerusalem did formerly Nor can we justly reproach the Indians as declar'd enemies to our Religion or that they ever attempted to destroy it by open Persecutions or secret Perswasions by Presents or any other manner whatsoever that can be used to engage Christians to renounce their Faith and turn Idolaters For neither the Law of God nor that of Nations ever permitted War to be made against any People merely to establish Christianity among ' em Unless any one will pretend that the Gospel of Christ which abounds with Charity Meekness and Humanity ought to be introduc'd into the World by Force like the Religion of Mahomet The Spaniards can't say that they had no other end than that of protecting the Innocent seeing they have made it their whole business to rob pillage and murder the poor Indians taking upon 'em to usurp their Goods and Lands Besides if the War they undertook had bin in defence of those poor Wretches the Indians unjustly put to death for Sacrifices it would not have bin carried so generally thro' the Indies but would have bin a sort of Civil War kept up only in some particular Places Nor would the Spaniards have had right even in such Places to have made Slaves of those whom they took in such a War They can't so much as pretend that ever they had a Command or Order to this day from their Prince to declare War against the Indians 'T is easy to evidence such a Fact as this for the Governors and Generals have nothing to do but to show their Commissions if they have any There 's not one of 'em who has any fear of God or respect for his Prince that will pretend to shew any such Commission except the Vice-Roy Don Antonio and Don Sebastian Ramire Bishop of Cuenza all the rest that have made War on the Indians are Thieves and Robbers Murderers and declar'd Enemies of Mankind Seeing then the Spaniards have had no lawful reason to support their Declarations of War against the People of America nor have bin authoriz'd in such Proceedings by their Prince it evidently follows that the War they have made is injust and contrary to the Laws of God and Men and consequently that the Indians ought not to have bin treated as Slaves All the ways the Spaniards have us'd to compass this end of inslaving these People have bin monstrously wicked made up of nothing but Fraud and Treachery unlawful Tricks and Artifices and such unheard of Villanies as can't but fill the Minds of all that hear 'em with astonishment and horror Some to insnare the poor Indians that liv'd among 'em have constrain'd 'em to own themselves their Slaves in Courts of Justice after which extorted Confession the Governors have order'd the King's Arms to be fix'd upon their Skin with a hot Iron tho they were not ignorant what an unlawful Course had been taken to abuse the poor Creatures Others hir'd the Indians with a little Wine or a Shirt or by giving 'em some other trifle of small value to bring 'em fatherless and motherless Children whom they put on Shipboard and transported into other Countries where they were sold for Slaves especially into New-Spain the Islands of St. John and Cuba or other neighbouring Islands But at first the Spaniards us'd open Violence attacking the Indians that liv'd peaceably in their Houses setting their Towns on fire massacring some and after the exercise of all this Cruelty carrying away those they could take alive to sell 'em for Slaves They us'd without any formal process to brand 'em with the King's Arms which was enough to make 'em pass for Slaves and accordingly they were sold from one hand to another till they were transported into the Islands These were all the forms of Justice the Spaniards observ'd in carrying away the Indians from
never be repair'd by any advantage they may allow 'em for they take a course to destroy both their Souls and Bodies Therefore seeing the Conversion of the Indians depends principally on your Majesty's Title and Jurisdiction over 'em you ought not to do any thing that may blast the hope of this Design and will infallibly hinder these People from embracing Christianity And it must be remember'd they have freely and willingly chose your Majesty for their Soveraign which is a kind of Contract they have made with your Majesty that cannot be violated without their Consent unless it be to put 'em in a condition more easy advantageous and secure than what they enjoy under your Majesty's Dominion And your Majesty is oblig'd to promise and swear to 'em that you will always preserve their Privileges as they are ordinarily kept in the generality of Kingdoms when a free People submit themselves to the Government of a new King This Practice is almost as antient as the World for ever since Men began to spread themselves upon the face of the Earth it has always been the custom of Princes to promise and swear to 'em to employ all their Power in preserving and defending 'em from Oppression Which evidently proves that your Majesty has not power to give up the Indians to the absolute Dominion of the Spaniards who have had the cruelty to destroy such numerous Nations of 'em without any legal Process or leave to make their Defence For it would be to act contrary to the Law of God and Nature to expose 'em to so many Miseries which are as so many invincible Obstructions to hinder 'em from turning Christians Nor is there any Prince on Earth who can justly pretend to have such a Power for Soveraign Princes have no Authority to do any thing that may provoke the Justice of God who has not set 'em over their People for their ruin and destruction or for the overthrow of the Church but on the contrary has set 'em in the World to defend the Church to bring their People to espouse the true Faith and edify 'em in it Reason and the Law of Nature direct that those who have made an ill use of the Privileges granted to 'em should be depriv'd of ' em Now the Jurisdiction allow'd the Spaniards over the Indians was only on condition they would instruct 'em in Religion and defend 'em from their Enemies and they have not only fallen short of this Engagement but even barbarously abus'd those they were oblig'd to protect 'T is remarkable in the Laws of Spain that if a Master treats any one of his Slaves inhumanly he is oblig'd to sell him because 't is but just that he who tyrannizes over his Subjects should lose his Jurisdiction over 'em which of right devolves on the Prince He that abuses his Title is not worthy to possess it and a Man neither owes Homage nor Obedience to a Tyrant So that your Majesty ought in quality of Soveraign Lord of the People of the New World to defend 'em and do 'em Justice when they are wrong'd and consequently to rescue 'em from the power of the Spaniards that they may enjoy their Liberty 'T is moreover a Custom establish'd by the Laws of Spain That if the King grant any Privilege contrary to the Catholic Faith 't is null and void as much as if it were contrary to the civil Good and Welfare of the Kingdom or to the Rights of any particular Persons And the same account is to be made of any Privilege given contrary to the Law of Nature as for example if a King should take away any private Man's Estate to bestow it on another Therefore your Majesty cannot divest the natural Princes of the Indians of their Dominion over 'em to invest the Spaniards with it who not only are Foreigners to 'em but also treat 'em after a tyrannical manner 'T is therefore necessary for your Majesty to revoke so unjust a Privilege destructive to the People and directly opposit to the Catholic Faith as well as to your Majesty's Service the advantage of your Kingdom in general the good of many Members of the Commonwealth in particular and which is contrary to Reason and the Law of Nature 'T is farther constituted by the Customs of Spain in conformity to the Imperial Laws of your Majesty as well as those of the Church that when a Privilege in process of time proves injurious and occasions more hurt than good it ought to be immediately abolish'd without so much as consulting the Prince that granted it because from that very moment wherein this Privilege began to be detrimental it ought to be suppos'd the Prince design'd to revoke it so that it can have no more force or authority because not according to the Prince's Intention who always ought to have Equity and the Divine Will in view Now since the Privilege granted the Spaniards to subject the Indians as Vassals is become so pernicious and occasions an irreparable damage to the Christian Religion and to the Crown of Spain and has bin the cause of the ruin of such vast numbers of People and of the desolation of some of the finest Countries in the World and seeing in all appearance it is the very reason of those Calamities with which God is now afflicting Spain 't is necessary to apply a speedy Remedy and to go to the root of the Disease in revoking so pernicious and tyrannical a Grant Besides the Dominion of the Spaniards over the Indians has never bin judicially approv'd by the Kings of Spain He that first shar'd these poor People among 'em as if they had been so many Sheep had no order to make this distribution which absolutely desolated and unpeopled New Spain but exceeded the limits of his Power so that no just Consequence can be drawn from what he did It was the great General d'Alcantara who began this irregular course in America In the year 1502 the most serene King Ferdinando and Queen Isabella sent General De-Larés from Grenada to govern the new Conquests At which time there were but three hundred Christians in the Island of Hispaniola This Governor was expresly charg'd to treat the Indians as free Nations to be very kind tender and charitable toward 'em to do 'em exact Justice on all occasions and not to impose too severe a Yoke on 'em or to inslave 'em in a word to protect 'em from all Injuries lest any Violence should prove a Stumbling-block to divert 'em from entertaining the Christian Faith and inspire 'em with an aversion to the Professors of it General De-Larés carried with him three thousand Spaniards who landed at St. Domingo where they soon found themselves reduc'd to great straits for want of Food However the strict Orders he had receiv'd would not permit him to do any Violence to the Indians or to infringe their Liberty in the least upon which he writes many things to the Queen against the Indians hoping to
taught Religion and a regular sort of Government establish'd among 'em whereby they would be brought to the Service of the True God which would become familiar to 'em By this means the Ground would be cultivated the Roads frequented and render'd more safe and the Country no longer be desert and forlorn The Spaniards would be supplied with Provisions and convenient places to lodg in on their Journeys and have a thousand other Advantages of which they are now depriv'd by the Indians deserting their Habitations Your Majesty may remember that after a mature examination of this Affair by many learned Men and able Divines they unanimously declar'd that the Dominion of the Indies could not be justly given to private Men nor dismember'd from your Majesty's Crown This Determination was signified to Ferdinando Cortez with orders to put it in execution Your Majesty was pleas'd on the same account again to call together an Assembly of Persons of great Learning and Virtue who after a long debate declar'd that the Spaniards could not lawfully be made Lords of the Indies After which your Majesty gave most express Orders to prohibit it revoking all Grants to the contrary procur'd on those false Accounts and Misrepresentations that had been given you Your Majesty commanded the Governor of Florida to put these Edicts in execution as may be still seen by his Instructions Among the principal Articles of these Constitutions one is That the Indians ought to be accounted free and not obliged to any other Services than the rest of your Majesty's Subjects who enjoy their Liberty under your Government That they ought to pay Tithes to God unless excus'd for some time and likewise such Tribute to your Majesty as is impos'd lawfully and in proportion to the Goods they possess and the quality of their Land according to the reasonable Estimate of those that govern ' em If it be desir'd that the Indians should be taught the Catholic Faith and brought to embrace our Customs while they keep up a sort of Government among themselves your Majesty ought not to give them as Slaves to any one whatsoever either for ever or for a limited time for this would be to expose 'em to the same Miseries they have hitherto endur'd and perhaps to increase them for after this there will be no dependence to be had on the Orders and Prohibitions made in favour of the Indians whatever Penalties shall be annex'd to facilitate their Execution for those that have bin already made are very wise Edicts and might be very useful if put in practice And one chief Reason against giving the Indians for Vassals to the Spaniards is the small account these latter make of the Lives of those poor Creatures for 't is not to be imagin'd with what Contempt they look upon 'em unless by those that have seen it Their excessive Covetousness induces 'em to make 'em labor beyond their Strength not caring what becomes of 'em so they get any thing by ' em If any Persons give your Majesty a contrary account of these matters you ought to look upon 'em as Enemies to the State and disaffected to your Majesty's Service If your Majesty be convinc'd by the Arguments produc'd you will prevent the Spaniards from committing a great many Violences and Murders of which they are every day guilty You will secure Spain from this Contagion in preventing your People at home from partaking of the Sins of their fellow-Subjects and sharing the Plunder with them which they have so unjustly gotten For all Men of sense acknowledg that the Crimes of the Spaniards in America render all Spain obnoxious to the Curse of God that the course they take to become rich is unjust that the Gold and Silver they bring from the Indies is stolen and that they are oblig'd to restore it to the right Owners whom they have unjustly plunder'd which likewise evidences that those that partake of these usurp'd Riches have no good Title to 'em for they ought to have no Commerce with those publick Robbers nor to sell 'em any Commodities for their stolen Gold they should not so much as receive Presents from 'em or consent to be their Heirs And if so it follows that all Spain is become guilty of the Crimes of those Men so that there are few but have reason to be under trouble of Conscience and are in danger of Damnation because there are scarce any who have not participated of the Rapine of those that have come from the New World It has bin objected by the Spaniards that if they have not a Jurisdiction over the Indians as their Vassals it will be impossible for 'em to live in the Indies and consequently that your Majesty will not be able to keep those Kingdoms that have bin conquer'd in your Name nor to publish the Catholic Faith there For they say if the Spaniards can't subsist there the King of Spain can't preserve his Dominion over the Indians nor maintain Monks among 'em to preach to 'em so that they must be destitute of the Light of the Gospel and those of 'em that have already receiv'd it will gradually lose it for want of fresh Instruction and so return to their former Idolatry and other Sins They that reason after this manner do it not so much from a Principle of true Zeal and Compassion lest so many Souls should perish as from a desire of oppressing these People and that they may grow rich by the Spoil they get from ' em 'T is only their privat Interest makes 'em talk at this rate for they are not at all concern'd about your Majesty's Interest or the Salvation of the poor Indians 'T is not the Good of the Public or the Glory of God that moves 'em for their Conduct sufficiently shews what little respect they have to the Law of God which forbids 'em to do the least hurt to any one how great an advantage soever it might procure ' em They ought to know if they have the true Sentiments of Christianity that tho your Majesty should run the risk of losing all your Conquests in the Indies and be render'd uncapable of causing the Christian Faith to be preach'd among the Indians it were better to forgo all such great Advantages than to obtain 'em by ruining the Inhabitants after the manner hitherto practis'd It had bin no great Misfortune to your Majesty if your Empire had not extended so far as the Indies and 't is an ill way of going to work to endeavour to establish Christianity there by such criminal Methods The reason of which is evident because we are forbidden to do evil that good may come Rom. 3. 8. God is not pleas'd with the greatest Sacrifices if polluted with any Sin but abhors all such Offerings 'T is a most hainous Sin and worthy of eternal Damnation to massacre Infidels on pretence of introducing the Christian Faith among 'em and of extirpating a part of 'em to save the rest God dos not