PERUVIAN SACRIFICES. 343 



Caciques, or in their citties. They did likewise offer and LlB v - 

 sacrifice shelles of the sea which they call Mollo, 1 and they 

 offered them to the fountaines and springs, saying that these 

 shells were daughters of the sea, the mother of all waters. 

 They gave vnto these shells sundrie names according to the 

 color, and also they vse them to divers ends. They vsed 

 them in a rnauer in all kinde of sacrifices, and yet to this 

 day they put beaten shells in their Chicha for a superstition. 

 Finally they thought it convenient to offer sacrifices of 

 everything they did sow or raise vp. There were Indians 

 appointed to doe these sacrifices to the fountaines, springs, 

 and rivers, which passed through the townes or by their 

 Chacras, which are their farmes, which they did after seede 

 time, that they might not cease running, but alwaies water 

 their groundes. The sorcerers did coniure to know what 

 time the sacrifices should bo made, which, being ended, they 

 did gather of the contribution of the people what should bo 

 sacrificed and delivered them to such as had the charge of 

 these sacrifices. They made them in the beginning of win 

 ter, at such time as the fountaines, springs, and rivers did 

 increase by the moistures of the weather, which they did 

 attribute to their sacrifices. They did not sacrifice to the 

 fountaines and springs of the desarts. To this day con 

 tinues the respect they had to fountaines, springs, pooles, 

 brookes, or rivers which passe by their citties or chacras, 

 even vnto the fountaiues and rivers of the desarts. They 

 have a speciall regard and reverence to the meeting of two 

 rivers, and there they wash themselves for their health, 

 anointing themselves first with the flower of mays, or some 

 other things, adding thcrevnto divers ceremonies, the which 

 they do likewise in their bathes. 



1 .I/M//M, a shell. 



