The royal commentaries of Peru : in two parts / written originally in spanish by the Inca Garcilasso de la Vega; rendred into english by sir Paul Rycaut.

·BooK V. Royal Commentaries. as chefe were. This Aco/la treating farther of thefe Bodies, in the 6th Chapter of his 5th Book, hath rhefe Words which follow. · " In the firíl: place, faith he; " they had an Art to conferve rhe Bodies of their Kirigs, and Great Men, with'-- " out íl:inking or corrüption, far the [pace of above two hundred Years; it) which ' ' manner the Bodies of the lnca-Kings w.ere found at Coz,co, ereéted in che¡r Cha- " pels and Oratories, where they were ad'ored; which the Marqµefs of Cannete, " when he wasVice-roy of che Indiu, caufed to be removed from chence, that he " mjght '!lboip1 che Idolatrous Woríhip, which they perfm:med towards' rhem, " and tranfp9cted three or four of them to a place called the King'sT.own; w hich " appeared very firange and fiupendious to. the Spaniards, to [ee Bodies after [o " many ~ars fo firm and found as they were. Thefe are che ·Words of Acofta; from whence I obferve, that tbefe Bodies had been removed to the King'sTown almofi twenty years befare he hada figHt of chem; which being a hot and moiíl: ' A.ir, wasmore apt to taint and corrupt Fleíl1, than theacold and dry A.ir of c_oz,co; and yet notwithfianding he faith, That twenty Years afrer their removal rhey were füll firm and uncorrupr, as formerly, and appeared wirh fuch Life, that chey ·Wanted •onely-Speech to make t_hem feem to he living. 1 am of opinion, cha~ che way to conferve Bodies, is after they are dead to carry. them to the Mountains of Snow, where being well dried, and congealed by the cold, and all humours con- . fumed and·digefied; then afrerwards to apply that bituminous rnatter, which rnay plump up che Flefh; and render it ful! and folid as. che Living. . Rut I 011ely ad- venture on this conjeétufe, from what I have feen thé lndians doe, when they have carried a piece of raw Fiefh into che cold Mountains, where after it harh· oeen well dried by .che Frofi , they have kept it as long as they pleafed with- out falt, or any other prefervative; and this was che t.Tlanner which th€ lnctwu[ed, for drying and ·keeping all the flefh Provifions ·which -rhey carried for Food to rnainfain their Army. I remember that I once touched a fing~r of Huayna <:;apac, whicb feem_ed to me like a íl:ick ofwo'od; and fo light were thefe Bodies; that ·an lndian could eafily carry one of tbe¡n in his Armes, or on his Shoulders, co i:he Houfes of Spanifh Gentle¡nen, wl'tü defüed to fee them. When they 'car- ried thern through che Streets, they1covered them wirh white Linen; and the Indians falling clown on their knees befare them, fighed, and wept, iliewing them all che reverence imaginable j and.fome of tbe Span'iards alfo would take off their Caps, and uncover their Heads to them, as they paífed, in ·tefürnony of che re- - ¡ fpeét they bore to che Bodies of Kings; with which che lndians were fo pleafed, and overjbyed, .that they knew not in what manner to exprefs their thankfulnefs to them. · . · · This is al! that we have been able to deliver concerning•the A.füons of Vir'aco· cha in particular; the other Monuments and Sayings of this famous King are loft, for" want of Lettets and Learning tv record thern to poíl:erity, arid have incurred · the Fate of many famous Men, whofe glorious Exploi~ and Deeds have been buried Íl\ the Graves with them: · · · Onely Bl~s Valera reports one memor.able Saying of this Viracocha, which beihg often repeated by him, was obferved by three IncM, . who kept it in remembrance 5 as alfo the Sayings of fome other Kings, which we íhall hereafter fpecífie. That which chis Inca delivered, had reference to the education of Children, of which he was made the more fenfible, 'by that Severity and.Disfavour wíth which he was treated.by bis Father in the time ofhis Minority; his Saying·was chis, That ' Parents are oftentímes the caufe·of ruine to their Chl!dren, whei-r either ihey educare them . with fach fondnefs, rhat thry never crofs them in their WiUs, or defires, but fu/fer them to aéf and doe whatfoever they pleafe, whereby they bécome fo corrupt in the manners of th~ir in- fancy, that Vice grows ripe with them at the Years of M anhood. Others, on the comrary' are fo fevere and cruel to their Children, that they break._ the tendernefs of their Spirits, and ajfright them from learning, dÍfcouraging them in that manner by menaces and leéfures of a fuperciliot1,s Pedant; that their ·wits are ·qbafed, ana defpair of attaining to knowledge and vertue. The way i~ to k!ep an indijferent mean between both_, ~J which Youth becomes valiant and hardy in W-ar, and wife and political in the time of.-feace. With which El.u Valera concludes che Reign of chis Inca Viracocha, B o b-K