YBARRA | LETTER OF DR. DIEGO ALVAREZ CHANCA 45! 
of the gold that they value in their ornaments; it is its showy 
appearance. 
“The surgeon of the fleet! and myself being present, the admiral 
told Guacamari that we were skilled in the treatment of all human 
ills, and wished that he would show us his wound. Guacamari 
replied that he was willing, and then I said it would be better, if 
possible, to examine the wound outside the house,” because there 
were so many people inside of it, that made the place somewhat 
dark, and we needed better light. To this he consented, but in my 
opinion more from fear of the truth being found out than from 
any inclination on his part to do so, and went out of the house 
leaning on the arm of the admiral. After he was seated, the sur- 
geon approached him and began to untie the bandage that covered 
the wound. (Guacamari then told the admiral that his injury had 
been inflicted with a ciba, by which he meant with a stone. When 
the wound was uncovered, we examined it carefully; and it is a 
fact that there was no more wound on that leg than on the. other, 
although he cunningly pretended, when we touched it, that it pained 
him very much.? 
“There were certainly many proofs of an invasion by a hostile 
people, so that the admiral was at a loss what to do. He with 
many others of us thought, however, that for the present at least, 
and until we could ascertain the truth of what had happened, it 
was better to conceal our distrust. 
“Fish is abundant here, an article of food that we greatly needed, 
for our provision of meat was running short, and it is a singular 
kind of fish, more wholesome than those we have in Spain. The 
climate does not allow the fish to be kept from one day to another, 
for all animal food speedily become unwholesome on account of the 
great heat and dampness. 
“Large quantities of vegetables have been planted, and they cer- 
*On that expedition of the Spaniards there were, besides Dr. Chanca, 
in charge of the general health of the explorers (many of them distinguished 
persons belonging to the Court of Ferdinand and Isabella, as already ex- 
plained), a ship surgeon, called i in Spain in those times, fisico or physicist, and 
also a pharmacist. 
*Dr. Chanca unquestionably had a suspicion that Guacamari was feign- 
ing, and wanted to be sure. As it afterward turned out, he was right in 
his incredulity. 
*This remakable example of feed hypocrisy and deceit i in an uncivilized 
American Indian does not contribute to the idea of straightforward, im- 
pulsive sincerity and honesty of the human race in its unsophisticated state. 
The perfidy of Guacamari brings to my memory the origin of the well- 
known proverbial American expression, “ Honest Indian.” 
