WHOLE VOL. THE WEST INDIES VAZQUEZ DE ESPINOSA 19 



farther than Spaniards can without any, as I have seen and noted 

 during the time that I was in those Kingdoms of Peru, New Spain, 

 Honduras, and Nicaragua, and in most cases they are treated harshly 

 and are belabored and kicked and beaten, without turning against 

 those who maltreat them, as I have noticed and remarked all the 

 time I was in those kingdoms, and though they are so far apart, one 

 from the other, the character of the Indians runs in the same mold. 



Chapter IX 



Continuing the Description of the Same Subject, and the Interpre- 

 tation of the Prophecy with Respect to the Qualities and Character- 

 istics of the Indians. 



49. He that sits down within the boundaries, i.e., the Indies, 

 because the most thickly populated part of them lies within the 

 Tropics, which is the central part of the globe, and the limits and 

 boundaries are those which God set for the sun, those which it should 

 reach in its natural course to bring light to the earth and the other 

 benefits which it causes for the welfare of living creatures and plants, 

 without being able to pass beyond the boundaries mentioned. 



50. He saw rest that it was good, and the land excellent, and for 

 that reason be settled down in it ; for it is the best in the world in 

 fruitfulness and charm, with even and uniform temperature. The 

 whole year through, one sows and reaps ; the trees are always cov- 

 ered with leaves and flowers and loaded with fruit ; the plains, valleys, 

 and woods are full of pastures for cattle, and among the herbs are 

 many with remarkable virtues. In the rivers and streams of sweet and 

 crystal-clear water, there are various kinds of delicious fish ; its wealth 

 in gold, silver, and other metals is well known ; there is abundance 

 of pearls and precious stones ; and there are in the Indies bezoar 

 stones, cordials, aromatic gums, balsam and other drugs and valu- 

 ables, so that they lack for nothing, and so he settled there, since it 

 was rest for him, and very good. The days are of the same length 

 as the nights, for that country lies between the Tropics, and it does 

 not have the excessive variations of temperature we experience in 

 Europe, with our hot summers and cold winters ; and since the land 

 is good, with the advantages and characteristics referred to, the 

 Indians do not like to leave it and they have no desire to wander in 

 search of new territories, as do we and other nationalities. 



51. And just as the ass put his shoulder to the burden, since they 

 have always carried on their shoulders their burdens and products, 

 both in the days of their heathendom and since the Spanish conquest. 



