William Henry Giles Kingston

“ One afternoon we found ourselves ascending through a narrow and wild gorge in the mountains. For three hours we had been mounting higher and higher, till our beasts began to show great signs of weariness. At last we saw before us a huge rock which, projecting from the side of the mountain, completely overhung the road, and looked as if it would overwhelm all who attempted to pass under it; while on the other side was a precipice three or four hundred feet in perpendicular height, at the bottom of which appeared a dark chasm with a wild roaring torrent running through it. ”

“ From among their dusky lines arose a forest of waving banners, long lances, and battle-axes, tossing to and fro, and glittering in the rays of the noonday sun which shone down upon their heads. At intervals might be seen rich panoplies of feather work and lofty plumes, marking the post of some leading cacique, or Inca noble. Some way to the right, on a rising ground, rose the magnificent canopy under which the Inca Tupac Amaru was to be found, surrounded by his generals and nobles. ”

“ I was thus giving way to despair, when I was aware of a considerable decrease in the density of the sand-laden atmosphere; the last breath of the fierce whirlwind passed by; the sun shone forth bright and clear, and I stood alone amid a sea of glittering sand. Oh, with what an aching anxious heart I looked around, to see if the one object I sought was visible on that dreary white expanse! Before me, there was nothing; a few mounds and rocks alone were to be seen between me and the horizon ”

“ None of us had ever seen so much wealth in one mass. “There, take what you can carry, and cover up the rest,” exclaimed Manco. “You call that wealth,” he continued, as if divining our thoughts; “yet of what use is it to mankind thus locked up from sight? Now hasten, or daylight will surprise us before we can reach the cave.”
Following his direction, we loaded ourselves with as much of the pure gold as we could carry; and then replacing the body as we found it, we again covered up the grave. Then extinguishing our torches, we set out to return to our cavern, which we reached in safety. ”

“ The old chief who had first taken us prisoners, finding himself thus unceremoniously deprived of our company, left us to our fate, and for some time we rode on in silence among the general’s body-guard. Every man in the army seemed to be talking at the same time. They were, I found, boasting to each other of the deeds of valour they had performed, of the enemies they had slain, and of the booty they had collected. The general after some time called us to his side, and asked us if we could inform him what the Spaniards were about, and whether they were likely to attack the Indian armies. ”

“ We were all talking very eagerly about our proposed plans, when a loud yell made us start to our feet, and, looking up, we saw a number of Indians posted on the heights above us. Some had bows, with their arrows ready drawn to shoot us; and others had slings in their hands, which they were whirling round with heavy stones, prepared to hurl at our heads. In another moment we should have had a shower of deadly missiles rattling about us, when Pedro, rushing towards them, shouted out, in the Quichua language, that we were friends of the Inca. ”

“ Bidding adieu to our unhappy hostess and the villagers, our cavalcade was put in motion, and we plunged into the interminable forest. Without the assistance of our Indian guides, we could not possibly have found our way among the gigantic trees which shot up like tall masts from the level soil, often branchless till near the summit, where their boughs intertwined, and formed a canopy which the rays of the sun could scarcely penetrate.
“On, on, my friends!” cried Manco; “the enemy may be on us before we are aware of their approach. ”

“ The court-yard was soon filled, and at length the Peruvians met the hereditary enemies of their race, face to face, in a struggle for life and death. The Spaniards who had been left to guard the walls of the garden rallied, and attempted in a compact body to enter the house by one of the side doors; but the Indians threw themselves in their way, and attacked them with a courage I scarcely expected to see exercised. They rushed in upon them, some seizing the muzzles of their muskets, while others cut at them with their axes, or pierced them with their spears. ”

“ Nothing that Manco or his wife could say had power to deter me.
“You will be taken by the cruel Spaniards, and executed as a spy,” said Nita, the tears dropping from her eyes as she spoke.
“No Indian on whom you can rely will be able to accompany you, and you cannot find your way alone,” observed Manco. “Besides, in these unhappy times robbers and desperadoes of every sort are ranging through the country; and if you escape other dangers, they will murder you.” ”

“ The Indians, whom they always loved and pitied, could not have been guilty of such barbarity. If your countrymen have murdered their benefactors, I tell you that they are miserable worthless wretches; and the Spaniards will be justified in sweeping them from the face of the earth.”
As I gave utterance to these exclamations, I felt my spirit maddening within me. I cared not what I said; I felt no fear for the consequences. At first, after I had spoken, a cloud came over Manco’s brow; but it quickly cleared away, and he regarded me with looks of deep commiseration. ”

“ The only chance of success the Indians have is to be united, to act under one chief, and to follow up each advantage, till they have driven the Spaniards from their shores.”
“Very good,” said the general. “I will be that chief, and will follow the advice of the English stranger.”
And he drew himself up proudly in his saddle, as if he was about to become Inca of Peru. I saw after this, that any advice I could offer to him would be thrown away; besides, I doubted much whether I was justified in offering encouragement to the Indians. ”

“ Each man carried a club by his side, and a long spear in one hand, and a bow, with an arrow ready for use, in the other. As one of them turned his face, I saw that he was a Red Indian; and by the peculiar expression of his countenance, I felt certain that they must belong to the dreaded Cashibos. I trembled for the safety of Nita and my two friends, for I could not doubt that many others were in the neighbourhood; and I could scarcely dare to hope that they could fail to discover our camp, or to fall in with Manco and the Indians. ”

“ It was just such a place as one might have expected an ambush to have been placed in; as a few resolute men might have held the road, aided by others sheltered by the rocks, against a whole army attempting to pass. An oppressive gloom invaded the spot, and the air seemed damp and heavy, as if the warming rays of the sun had never penetrated below the tops of the cliffs. ”

“ Their shouts of triumph, and the shrieks of the Indians, reached our ears with terrible distinctness where we stood. During our ascent we had heard nothing; even the rattle of the musketry was unheeded. Now and then the Spaniards halted to load, and they again sent forth a volley, which in that narrow space took terrible effect; and once more they advanced to the charge. The Indians did not once attempt to rally, but fled like a flock of sheep chased by dogs; those in the rear falling the first victims, and the conquerors passing over their prostrate bodies. ”

“ It light showed us in a clear space, under a wide spreading shrub, poor Pedro on the ground, with a large jaguar standing over him. The attention of the savage animal had been attracted by our approach, and he stood glaring fiercely, uncertain whether to carry off his prey or spring at us. Ned was afraid of firing, lest we should miss the jaguar and hit Pedro. My torch was of more service than his pistol. I saw in a moment that the only chance of saving my friend was to frighten the beast, so, thoughtless of the clanger to myself, I sprung towards him, and dashed the burning brand in his face. ”

“ I say, let us stop and pull it to pieces, or some of the Spaniards may chance to see it, and it will show them which way we are gone. It is a foolish notion people have of caring what those they may never see or hear of again, think of something they have made or done. Nothing good or useful, I mean, but some folly or other. It’s what makes people carve their names on the top of a rock, or some out-of-the-way place, that somebody else, about as wise as themselves, may know that they have been there. ”

“ I am not fond of dwelling on horrors; but I should fail to give a true picture of warfare and its effects, were I to neglect to describe those scenes which are its never-failing accompaniments. I tried to sleep; but at first the blaze of the fire, the voices of those around me, and the din of the camp, kept me awake; and when that had ceased, all the soldiers except the sentries, and even the Indian prisoners, having dropped off asleep, there came up from the depths of the mountain gorge a sound which, as I suspected its cause, effectually banished repose. ”

“ So vastly superior, however, were the Indians in numbers, that the wings being moved forward were on the point of completely encircling the Spaniards, when the whole force of the latter, advancing at a quick march, made a desperate attack on the Peruvian centre, the cavalry meantime charging the wings. The Indians, already shaken, could not withstand the shock. The chiefs urged them on. Many fought with the most desperate bravery. It had now become a hand-to-hand combat, the Spaniards like a wedge forcing their way onward. The great aim seemed to be to seize the Inca. ”