首页 >出版文学> A Vanished Arcadia>第2章
  Asimpleandeasystyle,akeenhabitofobservation,longacquaintancewiththecountry,azealfortheconversionoftheinfidel,notonlytoChristianity,buttoamorecomfortablemodeoflife,towhichheaddsafaithsufficienttomovetheCordilleraoftheAndes,butatthesametimerestrictedbyacommon
  senseandveracitynotalwaysobservableinreligiouswriters,renderDobrizhofferapersonalfriendaftertheperusalofhiswritings。
  Dobrizhoffer'sbookwaswritteninLatin,andprintedinViennain1784
  underthetitleof`HistoriadeAbiponibus',etc。AGermantranslationbyProfessorKeilwaspublishedatPesthinthesameyear。
  TheEnglishtranslationisoftheyear1822。
  EnglishissingularlybarreninregardtotheJesuitsinParaguay。
  FatherFalconer,anEnglishJesuit,hasleftacuriousandinterestingbookprintedatHerefordin1774,buthetreatsexclusivelyofwhatisnowtheprovinceofBuenosAyres,theFalklandIslands,andofPatagonia。
  AsanEnglishmanandaJesuitasomewhatrarecombinationintheeighteenthcentury,andasonewhodoubtlessknewmanyoftheParaguayanpriests,histestimonywouldhavebeenmostimportant,especiallyashewasamanofgreatinformation,mucheducation,anintrepidtraveller,and,moreover,onlyenteredtheCompanyofJesusatacomparativelyadvancedage。
  ItisinSpanish,orinLatinbySpanishauthors,thatthegreaterportionofthecontemporaryhistoriesandaccountsaretobefound。
  Literatures,likeotherthings,havetheirtimesoffashion。
  AtonetimeaknowledgeofSpanishwasasrequisiteassometinctureofFrenchisatpresent,andalmostasuniversal。
  MenfromGermany,England,andHollandwhometinaforeigncountrycommunicatedinthatlanguage。IntheearlyportionofthecenturyTicknor,Prescott,andWashingtonIrvingrenderedSpanishliteraturefashionabletosomedegree。
  ItistoberememberedthattheSpanishcolonistswereasaruleantagonistictotheJesuits,andthat,therefore,SpanishwritersdonotofnecessityholdabrieffortheJesuitsinParaguay。
  Moreover,thenamesofEsmidSmith,FildoFields,Dobrizhoffer,CataldiniandTomasBrunoBrown,whoismentionedasbeing`naturaldeYorca',Filge,Limp,Pifereti,Enis,andAsperger,thequaintmedicalwriteronthevirtuesofplantsfoundinthemissionterritory,showhowmanyforeignJesuitswereactuallytobefoundinthereductionsofParaguay。Formoreinformationonthismatterseethe`ColecciondeDocumentosrelativosa/laExpulsiondelosJesuitasdelaRepublicaArgentinayParaguay',publishedandcollectedbyFranciscoJavierBrabo,Madrid,1872。
  LaterthehistoricalresearchesofSirWilliamStirlingMaxwelldrewsomeattentiontoit。To
  dayhardlyanyliteratureofEuropeissolittlestudiedinEngland。Stillleavingapartthepurelyliterarytreasuresofthelanguage,itisinSpanish,andalmostaloneinSpanish,thattheearlyhistoryofAmericaistobefound。
  Afterthestruggleforindependencewhichfinishedabout1825,someinterestwasexcitedintheSpanish
  Americancountries,stimulatedbythewritingsofHumboldt;butwhenitbecameapparentthatonthewholethosecountriescouldneverbeoccupiedbyNorthernEuropeans,interestinthemdiedoutexceptforpurposesconnectedwiththeStockExchange。Yetthereisacharmwhichattachestothemwhichattachestonoothercountriesintheworld。Itwastherethatoneofthegreatestdramas,andcertainlythegreatestadventureinwhichthehumanracehasengaged,tookplace。WhatAfricahasbeenforthelasttwentyyears,SpanishAmericawasthreehundredyearsago,thedifferencebeingthat,whereasmodernadventureinAfricagoesonunderfullobservation,anddealsinthemainwithabsolutelyuncivilizedpeoples,theconquestofSouthAmericawasinvestedwithallthecharmofnovelty,andbroughttheconquerorsintocontactwithatleasttwopeoplesalmostasadvancedinmostoftheartsofcivilizationastheywerethemselves。
  WhenfirstSebastianCabotandSolisascendedtheParana,theyfoundthattheGuaranisofParaguayhadextendedinnoinstancetothewesternshoreofeitherofthoserivers。
  Thewesternbankswereinhabitedthen,asnow,bythewanderingIndiansofthestillnotentirelyexploredterritoryoftheGranChaco。
  ChacoisaQuichuaIndianwordmeaning`hunting'or`hunting
  ground',anditissaidthataftertheconquestofPerutheIndiantribeswhichhadbeenrecentlysubjugatedbytheIncastookrefugeinthishugedomainofforestandofswamp。
  TheIncaGarcilasodelaVega,inhis`CommentariosReales'enMadrid1723,enlaoficinaRealya/costadeNicholasRodriguezFranco,Impressordelibros,sehallaranensucasaenlacalledeelPoc,oyenPalacio,derivesthewordfromtheQuichua`Chacu/'=asurrounding。Ifheisright,itwouldthenbeequivalenttotheGaelic`tinchel'。Taylor,theWater
  poet,hasleftacuriousdescriptionofoneofthesetinchels。
  ItwasatatinchelthattherisingundertheEarlofMarinthe'15
  wasconcocted。
  Bethatasitmay,theChacoIndiansofto
  day,comprisingtheremnantsoftheLulis,Tobas,Lenguas,Mocobios,andothers,arealmostassavageaswhenfirstwehearoftheminthepagesofAlvarNunezandHuldericoSchmidel。ThesetribestheJesuitsonmanyoccasionsattemptedtocivilize,butalmostentirelywithoutsuccess,asthelongrecordofthemartyrdomofJesuitmissionariesintheChacoproves,aswellasthegradualabandonmentoftheirmissionsthere,towardsthesecondhalfoftheeighteenthcentury。
  CertainitisthatatvariousplacesintheChaco,inthequaintoldmapstheJesuitshaveleftus,onereads`MissiondeSantaCruzdelosVilelas',`MissiondelaConcepciondelosFrontones',andothers;butmuchmorefrequentlytheirmapsarestuddedwithcrosses,andsomesuchlegendas`HicoccisisuntPP。AntoniusSalinusetPetrusOrtizZarate'。
  ItwasonlywhentheJesuitsencounteredthemorepeacefulGuaranisthattheymetwithrealsuccess。
  SeethecuriousmapcontainedinthenowrareworkofP。PedroLozano,entitled,`DescripcionChorographica……delGranChaco,Gualamba',etc。
  Alsointheinterestingcollectionofoldmapspublishedin1872atMadridbyFranciscoJavierBrabo。
  Whatwasthenatureoftheirsuccess,howdurableitwas,whatwerethereasonswhichcausedtheexpulsionoftheorderfromAmerica,andespeciallyfromParaguay,andwhathasbeentheresultupontheremainderoftheIndians,itismyobjecttoendeavourtoexplain。
  AlongresidenceintheriverPlate,togetherwithtwovisitstoParaguay,inoneofwhichIsawalmostalltheremnantsoftheParaguayanmissionsandafewofthosesituatedintheprovinceofCorrientes,andintheBrazilianprovinceofRioGrandedoSul,havegivenmesomepersonalacquaintancewiththesubject。
  Itis,ofcourse,tobetakenintoconsiderationthatmytwojourneysinParaguayweremadeafterthegreatwarwhichterminatedin1870,afterlastingfouryears;butthewritingsofDemersay`HistoireduParaguayetdesE/tablissementsdesJe/suites',Paris,1862,thoseofBrabo,andofAzara,showthedesertedstateofthedistrictofMisionesintheperiodfrom1767,thedateoftheexpulsionoftheJesuits,tothemiddleofthenineteenthcentury。
  TheactualconditionoftherichdistrictofMisionesParaguay
  atthetimeIvisitedit,shortlyaftertheconclusionofthegreatwarbetweenParaguayandBrazilin1870,doesnotenablemetospeakwithauthorityontheconditionofcommunities,theguidingspiritsofwhichwereexpelledasfarbackastheyear1767。
  Theactualbuildingsofthemissions,thechurchesinadismantledstate,haveindeedsurvived;inmanyinstancesthetalldate
  palmstheJesuitsplantedstillwaveoverthem。GenerallythecollegewasoccupiedbytheIndianAlcalde,whocameouttomeetthevisitoronahorseifhepossessedone,withasmuchsilveraboutthebridleandstirrupsashecouldafford,clothedinwhite,withacloakofredbaize,alarge`jipi
  japa'hat,andsilverspursbuckledonhisnakedfeet。
  Ifhehadneverleftthemission,hetalkedwithwonderandrespectofthetimesoftheJesuits,andatthe`oracion'kneltdowntopraywhereverthesoundoftheangelusmightcatchhim。
  Hischildrenbeforebedtimekneltallinarowtoaskhisblessing。
  IfhehadbeentoAsuncion,heprobablyremarkedthatthepeopleunderthoseaccursedpriestswerenaughtbutanimalsandslaves,andlaunchedintosomedisquisitionhehadheardinthesolitarycafewhichAsuncionthenboasted。Inthelattercase,aftermuchoftherightsofmanandthedutiesofhospitality,hegenerallypresentedyouwithaheavybillforIndiancornand`pindo'whichyourhorsehadeaten。
  Intheformer,usuallyhebadeyougowithGod,and,ifyouspokeofpayment,said:`Well,sendmeabookofHourswhenyougettoAsuncion。'
  `CocosAustralis'。
  OfIndians,hardlyanywerelefttojudgeof,forinthevillagesinwhich,accordingtothereportsfurnishedtoBucareli,theViceroyofBuenosAyresatthetimeoftheexpulsionoftheJesuits,thepopulationnumberedinthethirtytownsofthemissionsonehundredandtwentythousand,
  apopulationofatmosttwentythousandwastobefound。
  Oneverysidethepowerfulvegetationhadcoveredupthefields。
  Onruinedchurchandchapel,andonbrokentower,thelianasclimbedasifontrees,creepingupthebelfries,andthrowinggreatmassesofscarletandpurpleflowersoutoftheapertureswhereoncewerehungthebells。Inthethickjunglesafewhalf
  wildcattlestillweretobefound。Thevast`estancias',whereoncetheJesuitsbrandedtwoandthreethousandcalvesayear,andfromwhencethousandsofmuleswentforthtoChileandBolivia,wereallneglected。Horseswerescarceandpoor,cropsfewandindifferent,andtheplantationsmadebytheJesuitsofthetree`IlexParaguayensis'
  fromwhichismadethe`yerbamate',werealldestroyed。
  SeethereportsoftheMarquesdeValdeliriosandothersinthepublicationsofFranciscoJavierBrabo,Madrid,1872,andinthe`EnsayodelaHistoriaCivildeParaguay,Buenos
  AyresyTucuman',porDr。DonGregorioFunes,BuenosAyres,1816。
  Inthevastforests,stretchingtotheSaltodeGuayra,afewscatteredtribes,knownasCaaguas,roamedthroughthethickets,orencampeduponthestreams。Inthethirtytowns,oncefulloflifeandstir,ineveryoneofwhichtherewasachurch,finer,asanoldSpanishwritersays,thananyinBuenosAyres,therewasnaughtbutdesolationanddespair。TheIndianseitherhadreturnedintothewoods,beenkilledintheceaselessrevolutionarywars,orhadbeenabsorbedintotheGauchopopulationsofCorrientes,RioGrande,EntreRios,andofSantaFe。
  ItmaybethatallIndianracesaredestinedtodisappeariftheycomeintocontactwithEuropeans;certainly,experiencewouldseemtoconfirmthesupposition。ThepolicyoftheJesuits,however,wasbasedonisolationoftheirmissions,andhowthismighthaveworkedismatteratleastforspeculation。Itwasonaccountoftheisolationwhichtheypractisedthatitwaspossiblefortheextravagantcalumnieswhichwerecirculatedastotheirruleandrichestogainbelief。
  Itwasonaccountofisolationthatthefirstconflictsarosebetwixtthemandtheauthorities,bothclericalandlay。ThattheJesuitsweremorehighlyesteemedthantheotherreligiousordersinSpanishAmericaintheseventeenthcentury,thesayingcurrentinthosedays,`Losdemasvana/un~a,losJesuitasa/una'
  i。e。,Theothersgetalltheycan,buttheJesuitshaveoneaimtheconversionoftheIndians
  seemstoshow。
  ItisnotmypurposetodealwiththeprobablereasonswhichinducedtheirexpulsioninEurope。Sufficeittosaythat,whatevercrimesormisdemeanourstheywereguiltyof,theywerenevercalledontoanswerbeforeanytribunals,andthatinmanyinstancestheyweretreated,especiallyinPortugal,withgreatcrueltyandinjustice。
  Theburning,attheageofeighty,oftheunfortunateMalagridainLisbonundertheauspicesofPombal,forabookwhichitseemsimprobablehecouldhavewritteninprisonatsogreatanage,andwhich,moreover,wasneverbroughtintocourt,onlysupposedextractsfromitbeingread,mayserveasanexample。InorderclearlytounderstandthepositionoftheJesuitsinAmerica,andespeciallyinParaguayandBolivia,itisnecessarytoglancebrieflyatthehistoryofthefirstconquestoftheriverPlate。
  ThediscoveryofAmericaopeneduptoEurope,andespeciallytoSpain,opportunitiesforexpansionofnationalterritoryandindividualadvancementwhichnoepoch,eitherbeforeorsince,hasequalled。
  FromaclusterofsmallStates,strugglingforexistenceagainstapowerfulenemyontheirownsoil,inafewyearsSpainbecamethegreatestempireoftheworld。Theresultwasthataspiritofadventureandadesiretogrowrichspeedilypossessedallclasses。Inadditiontothis,everySpaniardinAmericaduringthefirstfewyearsoftheconquestseemedtoconsiderhimself,tosomeextent,notonlyasaconqueror,butalsoasamissionary。
  Now,missionariesandconquerorsaremen,onthewhole,moreimbuedwiththeirownimportanceandsanctity,andlessdisposedtoconsiderconsequences,thanalmostanyotherclassesofmankind。Theconjunctionofthetwoinonedisposedthe`conquistadores'ofAmericatoimaginethat,nomatterhowcrueloroutrageoustheirtreatmentoftheIndianswas,theyatonedforallbytheintroductionofwhattheyconsideredtheblessingoftheknowledgeofthetruefaith。Itwillbeseenatoncethat,ifonecandeterminewithaccuracywhichofthemany`faiths'preachedabouttheworldisactuallythetruefaith,amanwhoisinpossessionofitisactingproperlyinendeavouringtodiffuseit。ThemeanestsoldierinthevariousarmieswhichleftSpaintoconquerAmericaseemstohavehadnodoubtaboutthematter。
  BernalDiazdelCastillo,who,ashehimselfrelates,cametoAmericaattheageofeighteen,andthereforecouldhavehadlittlepreviousopportunityofstudyingtheology,andwho,moreover,wasunfittedtodosobythewantofknowledgeofLatin,towhichhehimselfconfesses,yetattheendofhishistoryoftheconquestofMexico,oneofthemostinterestingbookseverwritten,hasthefollowingpassage:
  `Butitistobenotedthat,afterGod,itwaswe,therealconquerors,whodiscoveredthem[theIndians]andconqueredthem;andfromthefirstwetookawaytheiridols,andtaughtthemourholydoctrine,andtousisduetherewardandcreditofitall,beforeanyotherpeople,eventhoughtheybechurchmen:forwhenthebeginningisgood,themiddleandendingisgood,whichthecurious[i。e。,attentive]readermayseeintheChristianpolityandjusticewhichweshowedtheminNewSpain。
  `AndIwillleavethematter,andtelltheotherbenefitswhich,afterGod,byouragency,cametothenativesofNewSpain。'
  BernalDiaz,`HistoriadelaConquistadelaNuevaEspan~a',vol。iv。,cap。207,Madrid,1796。
  Onewouldimagine,onreadingtheaboveextract,BernalDiazhadneverkilledanIndianinhislife,andthathehadsacrificedhisprospectsincomingtoMexicosolelytointroduce`aChristianpolityandjustice'
  amongsttheinhabitants。Yethewasnohypocrite,butastoutsagacioussoldier,evenkindly,accordingtohislights,andwithaloveofanimalsuncommoninaSpaniard,forhehaspreservedthenamesandqualitiesofallthehorsesandmareswhichcameoverinthefleetfromtheHavanawithCortes。Thephrase,`despuesdeDios'
  afterGodoccursrepeatedlyinthewritingsofalmostallthe`conquistadores'ofAmerica。Having,afterGod,conqueredAmerica,thefirstactionoftheconquerorswastosetaboutmakingtheirfortunes。
  Inthosecountrieswhichproducedgoldandsilver,asMexicoandPeru,theyworkedtheminesbythelabouroftheIndians,thecrueltiesandhardshipsbeingsogreatthat,inaletterofPhilipII。totheComedeChinchon,theViceroyofPeru,datedMadrid,April30,1639,writtenfiftyyearsafterthediscovery,hesays:`TheseIndiansflee,becomeill,anddie,andhavebeguntodiminishgreatlyinnumber,andtheywillbefinishedsoonunlessanefficientremedyisprovidedshortly。'
  Especiallynotingdowntheappearanceandqualitiesof`elcaballoMotilla',thehorseofGonzalodeSandoval。ThusdoesheminutelydescribeMotilla,`thebesthorseinCastilleortheIndies'。`Elmejorcaballo,ydemejorcarrera,revueltoa/unamanoya\otraquedecianquenosehabiavistomejorenCastilla,nienesatierraeracastan~oacastan~ado,yunaestrellaenlafrente,yunpieizquierdocalzado,quesedeciaelcaballoMotilla;
  e/quandohayahoradiferenciasobrebuenoscaballos,suclendeciresenbondadtanbuenocomoMotilla。'
  InParaguaytherewerenomines,buttherewereothermethodsofextractingmoneyfromtheIndians。AtthefirstconquestParaguaywasnotthelittlecountryboundedonthewestbytheParaguay,onthesouthbytheParana,onthenorthbytheAquidaban,andontheeastbySierraofMbaracavu,asitisatpresent。
  Onthecontrary,itembracedalmostallthatimmenseterritoryknownto
  dayastheArgentineConfederation,someoftheRepublicofUruguay,andagreatportionofBrazil,embracingmuchoftheprovincesofMisiones,RioGrandedoSul,Parana,andMattoGrosso,aswellasParaguayitself。
  Howthelittlecountry,twelvehundredmilesfromthesea,cametogiveitsnametosuchanenormousterritory,andtohavetheseatofgovernmentatAsuncion,demandssomeexplanation。
  PeruandChilewerediscoveredandoccupiedsometimebeforetheeasternsideofSouthAmerica。Theirrichesnaturallydrewgreatattentiontothem;butthevoyage,firsttoCartagenadeIndias,andthenacrosstheisthmus,andthere
  embarkationagainonthePacific,werebothcostlyandarduous。IthadbeentheambitionofallexplorerstodiscoversomeriverwhichwouldleadfromtheAtlantictotheminesofPeruandwhatisnowBolivia,thenknownasAltaPeru。
  Ofcourse,thismighthavebeenachievedbyascendingtheAmazon,especiallyaftertheadventurousdescentofitbyOrellana,ofwhichFrayGaspardeCarbajalhasleftsocuriousadescription;
  but,whetheronaccountofthedistanceorforsomeotherreason,itneverseemstohavebeenattempted。
  In1526SebastianCabotleftSpainwiththreesmallvesselsandacaravelfortheobjectofreachingtheMoluccasorSpiceIslands。
  ItwashispurposetoreachthemthroughtheStraitsofMagellan。
  Beingcompelledbywantofsuppliestoabandonhisroute,heenteredabroadestuary,andascendeditundertheimpressionthathehaddiscoveredanotherchanneltothePacific。Hesoonfoundhismistake,andbegantoexplorethesurroundingcountry。Fifteenyearsbefore,withthesameobject,JuandeSolishadenteredthesameestuary。
  OntheislandofMartinGarciahewaskilledbyaChanaIndian,andhisexpeditionreturnedhome。Hearingthattherewasmuchsilveratthehead
  waters,hehadcalledittheRiodelaPlata。
  Ifwetakethehead
  watersoftheriverPlatetobesituatedinBolivia,therecertainlywasmuchsilverthere;butCabotwasunawarethatthehead
  waterswereabovetwothousandmilesfromtheestuary,andhewasnotdestinedtocomenearthem。HedidgoasfarasapointontheriverCaracara,inwhatisnowtheprovinceofSantaFe,andtherehebuiltafortwhichhenamedEspirituSanto,thefirstSpanishsettlementinthatpartofAmerica。
  WhilstatEspirituSanto,severalexploringpartiesweresenttoscourthecountry。Oneofthem,underasoldierofthenameofCesar,neverreturned。Tradition,alwayseagertomakeuptohistoryforitswantofinterest,assertedthataftermarchingforyearstheyreachedacity。PerhapsitwasthemysticTrapalandaofwhichtheGauchosusedtodiscourseatnightwhenseatedroundafireofbonesuponthepampa。Perhapssomeother,forenchantedcitiesandEldoradoswereplentifulinthosedaysinAmerica,alternatingwithoccasionalempires,asthatofPuytita,neartheLagunadelosXarayes,Manoa,andtheCiudaddelosCesares,supposedtobesituatednearAraucointheChilianAndes。However,oneofthepartyactuallyreturnedafteryears,andrelatedhisadventurestoRuyDiazdeGuzman,
  thefirsthistorianofParaguay。ThusitwasthatthestreamofadventurerswaseverseekingforachanneltotheminesofPerufromtheAtlanticcoast。
  CabotappearstohaveascendedtheParanatotheislandofApipe,andthen,returning,enteredtheriverParaguay。HavingascendedpastwhatisnowAsuncion,thecapitalofParaguay,CabotencounteredIndiansfromthenorthwhotoldhimoftheminesinPeruandinBolivia,probablyunawarethatCabotknewofthemalready。Atthispoint,encouragedbywhatheheard,hegavethenameofRiodelaPlatatowhathadpreviouslybeenknowneitherasLaMarDulceorElRiodeSolis。
  Likemostnameswhicharewronglygiven,itremainedtotestifytothewantofknowledgeofthegiver。Fouryearsafter,CabotreturnedtoSpain,havingfailedtoattractattentiontohisdiscoveries。
  InthefaceofthewealthwhichwaspouringinfromthePeruvianmines,anotherexpeditionstartedfortheriverPlate。ItsGeneral
  forinSpainthetitlewasusedindifferentlybylandandsea
  wasDonPedrodeMendoza,agentlemanofGuadixinAlmeria,andamemberofthehouseholdofCharlesV。
  `LaArgentina',includedinthe`ColecciondeAngelis',BuenosAyres,1836。
  DonPedrohadseenserviceintheItalianwars,andseemstohavebeenamanofcharacterandbravery,butwantinginthediscretionandthenecessarytactessentialinthefounderofacolony。
  In1534theexpeditionstarted,unfortunatealmostfromthefirst。
  Ina`certainisland',asthehistorianoftheexpedition,HuldericoSchmidel,aGermanorFlemishsoldier,callsRioJaneiro,adisputeoccurredbetweenDonPedroandhissecondincommand,JuandeOsorio。
  Atacourt
  martialhelduponOsorio,DonPedroappearstohaveletfallsomeremarkswhichJuandeAyolas,theAlguazilMayorChiefConstable,seemstohavetakenupasanorderforinstantexecution。
  Thisheperformeduponthespot,plunginghisdaggerrepeatedlyintoOsorio,or,asHuldericoSchmidelhasit,`sewinghimupwithcuts'
  `cosiendolea\pun~aladas'。Thismurderorexecution
  forwhoshalltellwhenmurderfinishesanditslegalcounterpartbegins?
  renderedDonPedroveryunpopularwithallthefleet;for,asSchmidelhasitinhishistory,`thesoldierslovedOsorio。'TobelovedbythesoldierswastheonlychanceaSpanishofficerhadinthosetimesofholdinghisown。
  BothSchmidelandBernalDiazdelCastillo,whohadbothbeencommonsoldiers,andwho,curiously,bothwrotehistories,losenooccasionofvilifyingofficerswhousedthesoldiershardly。ItistruethatBernalDiazwho,unlikeSchmidel,wasamanofgeniusdoessowithsomediscretion,andalwaysapparentlywithreason。Schmidel,ontheotherhand,seemstohaveconsideredthatanyofficerwhointerferedbetweenthesoldiersandtheIndianswasatyrant,andhencehisdenunciationofAlvarNunez,underwhomheserved。
  `HistoriayDescubrimientodeelRiodelaPlatayParaguay',HuldericoSchmidel,containedinthecollectionmadebyAndresGonzalezBarcia,andpublishedin1769atMadridunderthetitleof`HistoriadoresPrimitivosdelasIndiasOccidentales'。
  In1535theexpeditionenteredtheriverPlate。HereMendoza,withhisusualwantofjudgment,pitcheduponwhatisnowthesiteofBuenosAyresasthespotonwhichtofoundhiscolony。
  Itwouldbedifficulttoselectamoreinconvenientplaceinwhichtofoundatown。ThesiteofBuenosAyresisalmostlevelwiththewatersoftheriverPlate,whichthereareshallow
  soshallowthatlargevesselscouldnotapproachnearerthantentofifteenmiles。Withoutaharbour,theanchoragewasexposedtothefullfuryofthesouth
  westgales,knownas`pamperos'。
  However,ifthesitewasbadtheairwasgood;atleast,itseemsso,foracaptainoftheexpeditionexclaimedonlanding,`Quebuenosairessonestos!'andhencethename。Hereeverysortofevilchancecameonthenewborncolony。ThePampaIndians,whomthehistorianSchmidelseemstohaveonlyknownbytheirGuaraninameofQuerandis,atfirstwerefriendly。Afteralittlewhiletheyceasedtobringprovisions,andtheGeneralsentoutanexpeditiontocompelthemunderhisbrother,DonDiegodeMendoza。ItdoesnotseemtohaveoccurredtoDonPedrodeMendozathat,hadthe`cacique'oftheQuerandislandedinSpain,noonewouldhavebroughthimprovisionsforasingledaywithoutreceivingpayment。However,DonPedrohadcometoAmericatointroducecivilizationandChristianity,andtherefore,knowing,likeBernalDiazandtheotherconquerors,hisownmoralworth,wasjustlyindignantthatafteradayortwotheIndiansrefusedhimmoresupplies。IntheencounterwhichtookplacebetweentheSpaniardsandtheIndians,DonDiegodeMendozawasslain,andwithhimseveralothers。Hereforthefirsttimewehearofthebolas,orthreestonesunited,likeaManxman'slegs,withstripsofhide,withwhich,asHuldericoSchmideltellsus,theIndianscaughtthehorsesbythelegsandthrewthemdown。AfterthisforetasteofEuropeanjustice,theIndiansbesiegedthenewly
  builttownandbroughtittogreatstraits,somuchsothat,afterthreemenhadbeenhungforstealingahorse,inthemorningitwasdiscoveredtheyhadbeencutdownandeaten。
  InthisdesperatestateDonPedrodespatchedJuandeAyolastogetsupplies。
  He,havingobtainedsomemaizefromtheTimbuIndians,returned,leavingahundredofhismeninalittlefort,calledCorpusChristi,closetoEspirituSanto,thefortwhichCabothadconstructed。
  ThefriendlinessoftheTimbusinducedDonPedrotoabandonBuenosAyresandmovetoCorpusChristi。Thereherepairedwithaboutfivehundredmen,allwhoremainedofthetwothousandsixhundredandthirtywithwhichhesailedfromCadiz。Thehorsesheabandonedonthepampa;
  theretheybecametheancestorsoftheinnumerableherdswhichatonetimeoverspreadtheArgentineRepublicfromtheChacotoPatagonia,andwhosedescendantstothisdaystockthe`estancias'ofthatcountry。
  ThegreatLasCasas,whomadesevenvoyagesfromAmericatoSpain
  thelastattheageofseventy
  two
  toprotecttheIndians,hadastrongopinionabout`conquerors'and`conquests'。
  InthededicationofhisgreattreatiseonthewrongsoftheIndians,hesays:`QuenopermitaFelipeII。lasatrocidadesquelostiranosinventaron,yqueprosiguenhaciendocontitulode"conquistas"。Losquesejactandeser"conquistadores"
  aquedesciendendeellossonmuchomasorgullososarrogantesyvanosquelosotrosEspan~oles。'Strangethatevento
  daythesame`atrocidades'of`tiranos'aregoingoninAfrica。
  Nodoubtthedescendantsofthese`conquerors'willbeasarrogant,proud,andvainasthedescendantsofthe`conquistadores'
  ofwhomLasCasaswrites。
  Mendozaleft`AzaraApuntamientosparalaHistoriaNaturaldelosQuadrupedesdelParaguay',etc。fivemaresandsevenhorsesintheyear1535。In1580DonJuandeGaray,atthesecondfoundingofthecity,alreadyfoundtroopsofwildhorses。Thecattleincreasedtoamarvellousextent,andbytheendofthecenturywerewildinPatagonia。Sarmiento`CivilisationetBarbarisme'