Of the province of Andahuaylas, and of what is to be seen as far as the valley of Xaquixaguana.

WHEN I entered this province of Andahuaylas,[434] the chief of it was an Indian named Guasco, and the natives were called Chancas. They go about dressed in woollen shirts and mantles. In former times they were so valiant, that they not only conquered other lands and lordships, but extended their dominions so widely that they came near to the city of Cuzco. There were fierce encounters between those of the city and these Chancas, until, by the valour of the Ynca Yupanqui, the Chancas were conquered. The captain Ancoallo,[435] so famous in these parts for his great bravery, was a native of this province. They relate that he could not endure to be under the yoke of the Yncas, and under the orders of his captains; so, after having performed great deeds in the districts of Tarama and Bombon, he penetrated into the depths of the forests, and his followers peopled the banks of a lake which is, according to Indian statements, down the course of the river of Moyobamba. When I asked these Chancas concerning their origin, they told me such another legend as did those of Xauxa. They said that their fathers were born in, and came out of, a small lake called Soclo-cocha, and conquered the country as far as a place called Chuquibamba, where they established themselves. After some time they strove with the Quichuas,[436] a very ancient nation, who were lords of this province of Andahuaylas, and conquered their country, which they have been lords of ever since. They held the lake out of which they came to be sacred, and it was their chief place of worship, where they prayed and made sacrifices. They buried their dead in the same way as the other Indians, and believed in the immortality of the soul, which they called Sonccon, a word which also means “heart.”[437] They buried women alive with the bodies of their lords, and also treasure and apparel. They had their days set apart for solemnising festivals, and places where they held their dances. As there are priests in this province labouring among the Indians, some of them have become Christians, especially among the young men.

The captain Diego Maldonado has always held these Indians in encomienda.[438] They all wear their hair long, and plaited into many very small plaits, with some woollen cords which are allowed to fall below the chin. Their houses are of stone.[439] In the centre of the province there were large edifices and store-houses for the chiefs. Formerly the Indians in this province of Andahuaylas were very numerous, but the wars have reduced them, as they have done the other Indians of this kingdom. The province is very long, and contains many large flocks of domesticated sheep. The part which is forest is not included within the limits of the province. This province is well supplied with provisions; it yields wheat, and there are many fruit trees in the warm valleys.[440]

We were here for many days with the president Gasca, when he marched to punish the rebellion of Gonzalo Pizarro,[441] and great were the sufferings of these Indians from the exactions of the Spaniards. The good Indian chief of this valley, Guasco, was very diligent in collecting supplies. From this province of Andahuaylas (which the Spaniards usually call Andaguaylas) the road leads to the river of Abancay, which is nine leagues nearer Cuzco, and this river, like many others, has its strong stone pillars, to which a bridge is attached.[442] Where the river flows, the mountains form a small valley where there are trees, and they raise fruit and other provisions in abundance. It was on the banks of this river that Don Diego de Almagro defeated and captured the captain Alonzo de Alvarado, general for the governor Don Francisco Pizarro, as I shall relate in the book containing the history of the war of Las Salinas.[443] Not very far from this river there were edifices and storehouses like those in all the other districts, but they were small and not of much importance.