Manco, the Peruvian Chief / Or, An Englishman's Adventures in the Country of the Incas

by William Henry Giles Kingston

The Indians were, I found, on their way to join the army; and as they wished to continue their march, they desired us to pack up our traps and accompany them. They looked upon us, I found, somewhat in the light of prisoners; though of this we had no reason to complain, as they were naturally suspicious of strangers, who might act as spies on their movements. We were treated kindly, but were narrowly watched whenever the party halted to rest. Though not better equipped, they were far more civilised than most of the tribes who composed the army of Tupac Catari; and they marched with some regularity, and took all necessary precautions to guard against surprise. We learned from them that the Spaniards, having recovered from the alarm into which they had been thrown at the commencement of the outbreak, were collecting in considerable force in the neighbourhood of Cuzco, to defend that city from an attack which Tupac Amaru was threatening to make on it.

“It matters not,” observed the cacique, who was my informant. “The more who collect, the greater number of our foes shall we overwhelm with one blow.”

I ventured to doubt this; but he replied—

“Stay till you see the army of the Inca, and try to number our standards; then tell me if you think the white faces can withstand them.”

I thought it better not to dwell on the subject, for fear of irritating the chief; but I recalled to my memory the handful of Spaniards who conquered the well-trained armies of the Inca Atahualpa, and had little hope for the success of his descendant, Tupac Amaru, with his host of undisciplined levies; though doubtlessly their opponents had greatly degenerated from the hardy warriors who fought under Pizarro.

As it was necessary to supply food for the army, and we were passing through a part of the country where the vicuñas abounded, the party halted to engage in a grand hunt, which is termed a chacu. About two hundred men were told off for this purpose; some remaining encamped, and others being sent as scouts, to the rear, to ascertain that no Spaniards were following us. Pedro, Ned, and I were invited by the cacique to accompany him. Half the party were supplied with weapons called bolas. These bolas were composed of three balls of lead or stone, at one end of as many long lines, formed of the twisted sinews of the vicuña, the opposite ends being fastened together. One ball is rather lighter than the others, and when used, this is held in the hand, while the heavier ones are swung in a circle round the head. When the Indian is about twenty paces from the object he wishes to strike, he lets go the lighter ball, and the weapon flies off, and the strings encircle in many folds the neck or legs of the animal.

Besides the bolas, the party had procured from the neighbouring villages a quantity of rope and a number of stakes, and with them we repaired to an extensive, elevated plain, where many herds of vicuñas were observed feeding. Having selected a spacious level spot, the stakes were planted in the ground, at a distance of fifteen feet apart, and were connected together by the ropes about two feet and a half from the ground. A circular space was thus formed, of perhaps a mile and a half in circumference, an opening of about two hundred paces being left to serve as an entrance. Along the rope were fastened bits of coloured rags, which blew about in the breeze, and were intended to frighten the animals, and prevent them from leaping over the barrier. This enclosure is properly called a chacu. It being arranged, we withdrew, and breaking into a number of small parties, we formed a circle at a little distance apart from each other, and several miles across. We then began to close, driving before us, with loud shouts, all the herds of vicuñas we met with. The men opposite the entrance advanced more slowly than the rest; and the timid animals, seeing the fluttering bits of cloth, ran before us with affright, till they reached the open space, when they darted into the chacu. Some fifty vicuñas were thus in a very short time collected, when the Indians, running among them, began throwing their bolas with the greatest dexterity, never failing to entangle the legs of the game, which they speedily killed with their clubs or knives. Sometimes the Indians use the bola on horseback; and I must remark that it requires great dexterity to do so with effect, as a clumsy person is very likely to twist the cords round his own neck or that of his steed, instead of the animal he is hunting. As soon as the vicuñas were killed, they were carried off to the camp to be skinned and cut up; and we then moved to a distance, to form a new chacu. During three days, which we passed in the neighbourhood, we killed two hundred vicuñas; and then, laden with their flesh, we continued our journey.

The vicuña is a more beautiful animal than either the llama or the alpaca. It is between them in size, measuring four feet from the ground to the top of the head, and two and a half feet from the ground to the shoulders. The neck is longer and more slender; and the wool is finer, short, and curly. The top of the head, neck, and back, and the thighs, are of a peculiar reddish hue; and the inner part of the limbs and the lower part of the neck are of a bright ochre colour; and the breast and lower part of the body is white. Each herd consists of from six to fifteen females and one male, who, standing at a distance, acts the part of guardian, while the rest are grazing, and when danger approaches, gives a peculiar whistle and stamp of the foot. The herd look, with outstretched necks, in the direction of the danger, and then take to flight, the male stopping every now and then to cover their retreat, and watch the movements of the enemy. Should he be killed or wounded, the Indians declare that the females will gather round him in a circle, and uttering shrill cries of lamentation, will suffer themselves to be destroyed rather than desert him.

As we proceeded on our march, we fell in with many other parties of Indians, advancing in the same direction; some of whom were of the savage tribes from the far interior, summoned to swell the host of the Inca. Many of them were accompanied by troops of llamas, carrying provisions. Some of these had bells hung round their necks, and were adorned with bows of ribbons at their ears. They proceeded at a slow pace, carrying their long, graceful necks something like the camel, and gazing anxiously around on either side with their wild prominent eyes, to watch the movements of their guides, or to observe the appearance of the country. They were of a variety of colours; brown, black, white, and pie-bald. I may here remark that the extreme height of the animal, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head, is not more than four feet and from six to eight inches; and from the sole of the foot to the shoulder, rather under three feet. Their frames are so slight that they will not carry a load of more than about seventy pounds weight; but they have the valuable qualification of being able to live many days, find even months, without drinking, owing to their power of generating saliva in their mouths.

Other parties had mules for the same purpose. Some were on horseback, and formed an irregular and very Scythian-like looking cavalry. Several bands of those on foot were followed by their wives and children; showing that they felt confident of victory, and came prepared to take possession of the territories they hoped to conquer. At length, after passing through a dark gorge, and climbing a steep acclivity, we once more began to descend; when, from the height on which we stood, we looked down upon the vast army of the Inca, collected on a plain, or rather wide valley, between ranges of lofty mountains.