OVALLE*S HISTORICAL RELATION OF CHILE. 1$^ 



Garcilaffo fays, there died ten thoufand Indians and Negroes ; of the fifteen thoufand 

 which went with the Inga Paulo, only five thoufand efcaped ; for being all natives of 

 Peru, and not having ever felt fuch cold, for which they were totally unprovided with 

 cloaths, they died apace ; the Spaniards being better provided, endured lefs ; and yet 

 Garcilaffo fays, they loft above a hundred and fifty men, and thirty horfes, which was 

 a great lofs ; others loft their fingers and toes, without feeling it. Their greateft fuf- 

 ferings were in the night-time ; for they had no wood to make fire, and the Indians eat 

 the very dead bodies out of hunger. The Spaniards with all their hearts would have 

 eat the dead horfes, but they could not ftop to flea them. At laft the provifions, fent 

 them by the Adelantado, met them j fo they paffed the reft of the way pretty well. 

 When they came to the valley, the Indians made much of them, where we will leave 

 them, to fee how others, that came after the Adelantado, pafs the jnountain. 



CHAP. XVI. — Others pafs the Cordillera. — What happened to the Adelantado in 

 Copiapo : — His Return from Chile : — His Misfortune and Death. 



I DO not find clearly the time of the year in which this army paffed the Cordillera : 

 it is certain it could not be in the midft of fummer, nor in the heart of winter, becaufe 

 not one of them would have efcaped, fince the firft high wind would have overwhelmed 

 them in the fnow ; therefore they paffed it, either in the beginning, or the end of the 

 winter ; and moft probably it was at the entrance of the winter ; for if it had been 

 at the going out of the winter, thofe who followed would not have run fo great a 

 hazard. 



The firft of thefe was one Rodrigo Orgonnes, who was left by the Adelantado in 

 Cufco, to raife men and follow him, as he did. He loft his nails, and would have loft 

 his fingers, if he had not taken his hand off the pole that held his tent up : others loft 

 their eyes, their ears, and many their lives ; particularly all thofe who were in one 

 tent, which a ftorm rifing carried up, and in the morning they were found all dead in 

 the fnow : they loft alfo fix and twenty horfes. 



The next who paffed after Rodrigo Orgonnes, was one Juan de Arrada, who brought 

 the Adelantado the king's difpatches, and his commiffion for his government, whom 

 we left in Copiapo ; and it will not be amifs to fee what befel him there, before he 

 received his commiffion, and faw his friends. The firft thing he did in this valley, was 

 a work of charity and juftice, in favour of the true lord of that land, and was not in 

 poffeffion of the government, becaufe he was left a minor, under the guardianfhip of ■ 

 his uncle, who not only did not think of putting him in poffeffion, but contrived to take 

 his life, which he would have effefted, if he could have got him into his hands ; but 

 the fubjeds, more loyal than he, had hid him out of the way. The Adelantado being 

 informed of the truth of this matter, and being entreated by the wronged Prince, 

 reftored him to the poffeffion of his government, putting the tyrant to death. 



Before this happened, at their firft arrival at Copiapo, the Inga Paulo took care to 

 look out for fome gold in that little province ; and in one day having got together 

 the value of above two hundred thoufand ducats, he prefented the Adelantado with it, '^*^ 

 in the name of his brother, the Inga Mango ; which gave the Spaniards great caufe of 

 admiration, feeing that in one village, and in To little time, fo much gold had been 

 found, gathering from this, how prodigioufly rich the country muft be ; and therefore 

 Almagro was content to think all his pains well taken that he had been at to come 

 into it. 



9 The 



