226 A VOTAGE TO Book V. 



cause, we found the same Indians again on their 

 knees before the tent; nor were we able, by all the 

 signs we could make, to raise them from that posture. 

 There fortunately happened at that time to be with 

 us a servant who understood both the Indian and 

 Spanish languages; and having directed him to ask 

 these poor people what they wanted of us, we were 

 informed, that the eldest of them was the father of 

 the others, and that his ass being either strayed or 

 stolen, he came to us, as persons who knew every 

 thing, to intreat us to commiserate his great loss, and 

 put him in a method of recovering his beast. This 

 simplicity of the Indians afforded us no small enter- 

 tainment; and though we did all we could, by means 

 of our interpreter, to undeceive them, we found they 

 were equally tenacious of this strange error as of ge- 

 nuflexion ; and would still believe, that nothing was 

 hid from us; till, having wearied themselves with these 

 clamorous vociferations, and finding we took no no- 

 tice of them, they retired, with all the marks of ex- 

 treme sorrow that we would not condescend to in-, 

 form them where they might find the ass ; and with 

 a fi-rm persuasion that our refusal proceeded from ill- 

 nature, and not from ignorance. 



The other adventure I shall mention, happened to 

 myself in particular, and not with simple and ignorant 

 Indian peasants, but with oneofthe principal inhabi- 

 tants of Cuenqa. While the whole company were on 

 the mountain ofBueran, not far from the town of 

 Cannar, I received a message from the priest of that 

 place, informing me, that two Jesuits of my acquaint- 

 ance were passing that way, and, if! was desirous of 

 seeing them, I might find them at his house. As I 

 was cheerfully descending the mountain to enjoy this 

 pleasing invitation, I happened to be overtaken by a 

 gentleman of Cuenqa, who was going to take a view 

 of his lands in that jurisdiction, and had observed me 

 coming from our tent. He was, it seems, acquaint- 

 ed 



