Children's Stories in American History

by Henrietta Christian Wright

Both of these wishes were granted; the governor sent immediately a large store of bananas, pineapples, and other fruits, besides meats and fish, with permission to Pizarro to send one of his men to visit the town. The governor also sent one of the chief men to welcome the strangers, and thus Pizarro saw for the first time one of the nobles of the empire he had come to conquer. He saw at once that these people were very different from the savages of the West Indies, or Atlantic coast, and that this courteous stranger, with his noble bearing and rich dress, belonged to a far higher race than the half-clothed Indians of Panama. So he resolved to be as friendly as possible with these people, and not let them imagine for a moment that he had come on a hostile errand. He received the nobleman very politely and invited him to dinner, and on his departure, gave him handsome presents. But the next morning, when the Spaniard Molino went on shore, Pizarro told him to notice carefully everything about the town, its size and wealth and means of defence, for he was more determined than ever to be called the Conqueror of Peru.

Molino was accompanied by a negro servant who carried some presents for the governor, and as the Indians had never seen a negro before, they looked at him very curiously, and tried to rub the black off with their fingers. And they also looked very curiously at the white man, for he was as strange to them as the negro; and they thought that the people from beyond the sea, with their white skin and fair hair, must belong to a great and wonderful race. Molino was well received by the governor, whom he found living in a fine mansion, guarded by soldiers in handsome uniforms, and attended by servants in livery, who served his meals upon golden dishes. Everywhere the Spaniard saw riches and prosperity, and his account of the splendid temples and palaces made Pizarro's heart beat high with hope. The next day he sent another Spaniard, Candia, to visit the town, and his report was as satisfactory as that of Molino. Pizarro was satisfied that he had reached the empire of Peru at last, and taking a friendly farewell of the inhabitants of Tumbez, sailed along down the coast to see still more of this marvellous country. Everywhere he landed he was delighted to find the country as rich and prosperous as at Tumbez, and at length turned his vessel homeward, well supplied with provisions for the voyage, and with a large quantity of gold and jewels, which he intended to show his friends in Panama in proof that he had really discovered the land of his dreams. Stopping at Tumbez again, he left Molino, and one or two more of his men there, and taking two of the inhabitants with him, sailed away, carrying the good wishes of the people with him, and with high hope of a speedy return.

But on his arrival at Panama he found the governor still unwilling to let another fleet be fitted out for the conquest of Peru, and Almagro, and Luque, and Pizarro, after talking it over, decided that the best thing to do would be to get permission of the king himself, and then the governor could not hinder them. So Pizarro sailed off to Spain, which he reached safely after a quick voyage, and as his name was now well known in Spain, the emperor sent for him to come to court, so that he might hear his adventures.

Spain was at that time the greatest country in the world; the emperor, Charles V., son of Ferdinand and Isabella, ruled over Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands; a Spanish adventurer had discovered the Pacific Ocean and added its shores and islands to the possessions of the mother country; Cortez had conquered Mexico and made it a Spanish province, and everywhere the Spanish name was renowned for wealth and power; and Pizarro, when he arrived at the court of Charles V., knew well that he would meet there some of the most famous soldiers and adventurers in the world, and he felt very proud of the honor done him, and rejoiced to think that in the future his own name would shine as brightly as those of the famous men he was about to meet. The emperor received him kindly and listened attentively while he told of his visit to Peru and described its wealthy cities and intelligent inhabitants; and when he added that the principal cities, which he had not seen, were even richer and finer than those near the coast, the emperor readily gave his consent to his returning there with ships and men and everything necessary for the conquest of such a great empire. And then Pizarro showed the king and his nobles the chests of gold, and caskets of precious stones, and beautifully dyed and woven cloths, and the llamas and Indians he had brought with him, and they all exclaimed in wonder at the sight, and Cortez said that just such riches had he found in Mexico, and doubted not that this new land was as wealthy as the country of Montezuma. And so no time was lost in fitting out a fleet, and while this was being done Pizarro took the time to go to Truxillo and see his old home again. He found all the country people ready to welcome him and do him honor, for he was known throughout Spain as a bold soldier and adventurer, and he entered his old village with very different feelings from those he had when he ran away, barefoot and ragged, some thirty years before. The old castle was still there, and little peasant boys still watched the pigs out in the fields; but with him all was different.

His father and mother were dead, and his four younger brothers were very desirous of going to America with him and seeking their fortunes in that wonderful country; and as he consented to this they all went with him to Seville, where the fleet was being fitted out, and when the ships started across the Atlantic the bold commander knew that he had four men, at least, that he could trust to the end, and who would never desert him, no matter how hard his fortune might be.

Panama was reached without any mishap, and then all was bustle and confusion until ships and men were ready for the start. Three vessels were bought, and with about one hundred and eighty soldiers, some thirty horses, and a good supply of arms and ammunition, the little fleet was at last ready, and after a solemn religious service in the cathedral the company embarked, and Pizarro found himself at last on his way to conquer Peru.

It was in the winter of 1531, seven years since the time of his first voyage to the South; then he was ignorant of the country and its dangers, but now he knew the coast, years of experience had taught him how to overcome its dangers, and above all, he had friends in the inhabitants of Tumbez, who would welcome him gladly, and who were ready to believe that he was as great and powerful as he wished them to think. It did not trouble him at all that he meant to repay their kindness and trust with treachery and murder.

In two weeks they came to a pleasant landing-place some distance north of Tumbez, and after sending the ships back to Panama they began marching southward. The way was often difficult, and they had to cross rivers and pass through swamps and thickets, but Pizarro always led them on, cheering his men and hoping for better things. On their way they passed an Indian village, which they captured without resistance from the natives, who fled in dismay from the sight and sound of the guns; here they found a great many large emeralds, as well as much gold and silver, and a good store of corn and other food, and after plundering the village they went on with light hearts, cheered with the prospect of still greater wealth and good fortune in the near future. The character of the country now changed and they found themselves passing through beautiful groves, and over roads bordered with trees bearing delicious fruits; and so they went pleasantly along until they reached the gulf of Quayaquil and saw once more the domes and towers of Tumbez. But now Pizarro did not come as a friend, but as a foe, and his only thought was to take possession of Tumbez and rob it of its wealth. There was a tribe of Indians living on the island of Puna, just opposite Tumbez, who were bitter enemies of the people of that city, and as soon as these Indians saw the arrival of the Spaniards on the other side of the bay, they sent a party over to ask Pizarro and his followers to come over to the island and stay with them. Pizarro knew that these people were unfriendly to those of Tumbez, and he thought it would be a good plan to make friends of them, so they would help him when he attacked the city; so he accepted the chief's offer, and in a little while the Indians had built some large rafts upon which the whole party was taken over to the island of Puna, whose chief stood on the shore to welcome them. Here they were given pleasant quarters and entertained with choice fruits and vegetables, and very glad indeed were they to have this chance of resting after their long and weary march.

But one day one of the Indian interpreters that Pizarro had brought with him came to him and said that the natives of the island were planning to attack him. This at once raised Pizarro's anger, and as several men that he sent around to spy upon the Indians came back and said that the story was true, he immediately ordered his men to fall upon the natives, and in a short time every village on the island was plundered by the Spaniards, and great numbers of the inhabitants slain. And then Pizarro decided to go at once to Tumbez; so he sent the rafts ahead loaded with booty, and getting as many boats as he could, embarked for the mainland.

But during all these days of fighting the people of Tumbez had made up their minds that the Spaniards had come back as foes instead of friends, and as soon as the rafts came to shore they seized the plunder and dragged the men to the woods and murdered them; then, in great alarm lest they should suffer worse things at the hands of the Spaniards than the natives of Puna had, they gathered together all the valuables they could carry and fled to the woods, and when Pizarro came to Tumbez he found its streets deserted, its treasures carried off, and many of its handsome buildings utterly destroyed. And so he was able to take possession of the city without losing a single man in battle, and when after a few days his scouts came in bringing the runaway chief with them, Pizarro decided to pardon the chief for killing the Spaniards who had been on the rafts, and to let him collect his people again and live peaceably in his city as before.