A Tour Through South America

by A. S. Forrest

in their treatment of the natives with whom they came in contact, for with the utmost rapacity and cruelty they enslaved or slaughtered such of the ignorant and defenceless creatures as were unable to escape into the bush. The country has witnessed countless scenes of brutality and bloodshed, enacted frequently in the name of religion, and in some instances with the sanction and countenance of the priests of Rome, who accompanied the expeditions. The Jesuit missionaries who began their humane and truly great work in Paraguay in 1586 must, however, be acquitted of the charge of cruelty and barbarity, displaying, as they did, a wisdom and self-sacrifice that will ever be memorable in the annals of the race, and the advent of these truly brave-hearted men is one of the brightest spots in the whole of Paraguayan history. The sons of all the nations of Europe contributed their share to the establishment of the mission stations among the Indians, and laboured to teach the primitive savages the principles of the Christian religion and the industrial arts of peace. Churches were built, many of which remain standing to-day, the trackless wilds and forests were penetrated by the faithful band whose unyielding opposition to the grasping avarice and barbarous cruelties of the Spanish settlers has earned for them the high place in the regard of subsequent ages which is their just reward.

Finding that the colonial authorities were careless of the trust reposed in them, the Jesuits advocated the cause of the natives to the very steps of the throne of Spain, and had the satisfaction of receiving the King’s approval of their efforts and his sanction to their further enterprise.

Unlike the generality of religious bodies of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the Jesuits, instead of leading lives of seclusion, pursued an absolutely reverse method, adopting a policy of practical helpfulness towards the masses of mankind, irrespective of colour, nationality, or creed. Their ranks, comprising some of the cleverest and most business-like brains of the time, were under the able generalship of men who were statesmen, politicians, or fighters, as occasion required, who adapted their methods to the countries in which and the peoples amongst whom they worked, whilst their firmness of character and mobility of action were admirably suited to the great task which they set themselves.

Under their able guidance and stern rule many tribes were arrested from pursuing the aimless, idle existence of nomads, and were collected into villages, where church and clergy ministered to their spiritual and temporal wants. Individual members of these tribes were raised to positions of trust and authority in each village or settlement, native “regidors” and “alcaldes” administered law and maintained order; the assistant clergy managed all the secular matters connected with the communities, instructing the people in arts and industries, directing the agricultural labour upon the land, teaching the young, and caring for the aged and infirm.

No private property existed in these Arcadian settlements, and the produce of nature’s harvests and men’s labour was stored for common use, the surplus being sold or exchanged to pay the King of Spain taxes and to supply the community with such manufactured articles as they required but were unable to make for themselves. The system evolved by the missionaries proved, whilst it lasted, one of the best ever adopted for governing native races and presented so many points of similarity to the plan introduced and perfected by the Incas on the Western Cordillera, that it is probable the Jesuit fathers moulded their government upon that of the ancient Peruvian theocracy.

The simple South American natives were easily led and their respect won by the efforts of the handful of Jesuits whose superior wisdom, strong character, and benign sympathy admirably fitted them for such work.

To these pioneers of a just appreciation of the rights of the natives, the country owes much, and it is unfortunate that the priests who have succeeded them have not lived and acted up to the high example set by the early fathers. The falling away is pitiful and the results deplorable, although, perhaps, the present state of affairs is an improvement upon that existing in the middle of last century, when a foreign resident in the city of Asuncion accused the priests of crass ignorance and gross immorality, adding that they were “great cock-fighters and gamblers, possessing a vast influence over women, a power which they turn to the basest of purposes, but they are little respected by the men.”

During my visit to Paraguay I met with persons who still believe the stories of a wild tribe still extant who flee from the approach of strangers, and who roam the woods and wander along the banks of remote rivers in a state of complete nudity. This tribe is thought by some to be the degenerate result of close inter-breeding, and it is said that the children who have been left behind and captured when the tribe was suddenly surprised have been found to be incapable of learning to talk. The ape-like characteristics of these tribes have been much commented upon, and the other natives regard them as so low in the scale of creation that they have no compunction in shooting them down at sight, looking upon them as little better than thieving monkeys. These “Guaqui” Indians are reputed to have no houses or huts of any description, no clothes or ornaments, no knowledge of the use of fire, and no articulate language, facts which, if correct, would seem to class them as the lowest and most primitive human beings at present existing upon the earth’s surface.

CROSSING THE PARAGUAY.