We further order that all persons who hold Indians without having a title, but have possessed themselves of them on their own authority, are to give them up and place them under our Royal Crown. As we are informed that other persons, though they hold a title, have been given repartimientos in excessive quantity, we order our Audiencias, each one within its own jurisdiction, to inform themselves fully about this and with all possible despatch, and to reduce the repartimientos of such persons to fair and moderate proportions, the rest being promptly brought under our Royal Crown, in spite of any petition and appeal that such persons may make. The Audiencias are to send an early account of what they have done that we may know how our commands have been obeyed. In New Spain let especial adjustment be made of the Indians held by Juan Infante, Diego de Ordás, the Master Roa, Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, Francisco Maldonado, Bernardino Vásquez de Tapia, Juan Jaramillo, Martín Vásquez, Gil González de Benavides,[167] and other persons of whom it is said that they hold a very excessive number of Indians, according to information which has been given us. As we have also been informed that there are some persons in New Spain who were among the first conquistadores, and yet have no repartimiento of Indians, we order that the President and Judges of the said New Spain find out about such persons and award them, from the tribute the Indians who may be released will have to pay, what shall appear to them a sufficient sustenance and fair provision for the said conquistadores who are without repartimientos.
The said Audiencias shall enquire how the Indians have been treated by the persons who have held them in encomienda; and, if it should appear that they ought in justice to be deprived of their Indians, owing to excesses and ill treatment of them, we order that they be promptly so deprived, and that such Indians be placed under [the protection of] our Royal Crown. The Viceroy and the Audiencia shall furthermore enquire, with reference to settlers in Peru, into the excesses which followed the affair between the Governors Pizarro and Almagro, in order to send us a report on the subject; and from the leaders whom they find chiefly to blame in those revolutions let them take any Indians they hold, and place them under the protection of our Royal Crown.
We further order and command that from now forward no Viceroy, Governor, Audiencia, explorer, or other person whatsoever, has the right to allot Indians in encomienda whether by original indenture, transfer, gift, sale, or in any other form or manner, nor by voidance or inheritance; but when a person who owned Indians dies let them be placed under our Royal Crown. It shall be the duty of the Audiencias to forthwith inform themselves specially about the person who dies, his condition, merits and services, how he treated the Indians he held, whether he left wife and children, and what other heirs, and to send us a report of the nature of the Indians and the estate, that We may dispose what may be proper for our service, and grant such aid as shall seem good to us to the widow and children. If in the meanwhile it should appear to the Audiencia that it is necessary to provide some maintenance for such widow and children it may be done by making them a moderate allowance from the tribute to be paid by the said Indians, the Indians themselves remaining under our Royal Crown as above stated.
XIII. We order and command that our said Presidents and Judges take great care that Indians who become liberated or unclaimed in any of the above ways be very well treated, and instructed in the doctrines of our holy Catholic faith, and remain, as our subjects, free men. This is to be their principal care and that to which we would have them pay particular attention, and in which they can best serve us; and let them see to it that the Indians are governed with justice in the orderly way that the Indians who are under the protection of our Royal Crown are now governed in New Spain.
As it is reasonable that those who have served as explorers of the said Indies, and those who have helped by settling in them and have their wives there, should have preference in the benefits, we order that in making appointments to magistracies and other positions of advancement our Viceroys, Presidents, and Judges of our said Audiencias shall prefer the first conquistadores, and after them the married settlers, provided that they are persons competent to fulfil the duties; and until these are provided for, no other person be considered.
As the hearing of lawsuits brought by Spaniards claiming Indians has been followed by serious objections, it is our pleasure and we direct that from now forward such suits shall not be heard either in the Indies or in our Council of the Indies, whether in respect of Indians under our Royal Crown or in the possession of another third party; but that every claim that may be preferred upon this subject shall be submitted to Us, in order that after obtaining the information proper to the case we may order it to be settled. Any suit that is now pending, whether before our Council in the Indies, or in any other place, we order to be suspended and not heard further, the case being referred to Us.
As one of the things wherein, as we are informed, irregularities have occurred, and may again arise in the future, is the manner of conducting explorations, We order and command that in such service the following procedure be observed:—he who desires to make discoveries by sea shall apply to the Audiencia of that district and jurisdiction for a Permit, and having obtained it he may proceed to explore, provided that, on pain of death, he do not take any Indian either from islands or mainland, even though he say that they sell them as slaves and this be so, or even though they wish to come voluntarily (excepting as to three or four as interpreters), nor may he seize or be in possession of anything against the will of the Indians, unless by way of barter and in presence of the person appointed by the Audiencia. The explorer shall observe the rules and comply with the instructions that the Audiencia may give him, on pain of forfeiture of all his goods and [arrest of] his person, at our discretion. He shall be instructed to take possession in Our name of all the places he may reach, and record all the latitudes.
XIV. Every such explorer is to afterwards submit to the Audiencia an account of what he has done and discovered, and the Audiencia shall send the full report to our Council of the Indies, that it may decide what is appropriate for God's service and our own. And let such explorer be charged with the settlement of the parts he has discovered, and have the reward that we may grant him in proportion to his labour, achievements, and expenses. The Audiencia is to send with each explorer one or two religiosos, approved persons; and if such religiosos should wish to remain in the country discovered they may do so.
XV. No Viceroy or Governor is to undertake new discoveries by land or sea, because of the inconveniences which have resulted from the same individual being at once an explorer and Governor.
XVI. Agreements and contracts having been made with some persons at present engaged in exploration we will and command that notwithstanding any contract that may have been made with them, such explorers do keep and observe what is contained in these Ordinances, and in the instructions which the Audiencia may have given them, provided the latter be not contrary to what we have ordained. Let them be notified that if they do not obey, or should exceed in anything, they will in such case, and ipso facto, be suspended from their appointments, and will incur the loss of all favours they might have derived from Us; moreover their persons shall be at our mercy. We order the Audiencias, each one of them within its own district and jurisdiction, to issue to the said explorers instructions that may appear proper, in conformity with what they will be able to gather of our intentions from these our decrees, in order that exploration may be conducted with more rectitude, and that the Indians may be well treated, and safeguarded, and instructed in the tenets of our holy faith. And let especial care always be taken to find out how this is being attended to, and to ensure its being carried out.