﻿Vol.2] 
  INCA 
  CULTURE 
  ROWE 
  319 
  

  

  The 
  Inca 
  were 
  then 
  living 
  at 
  uneasy 
  peace 
  with 
  their 
  nearest 
  neigh- 
  

   bors, 
  the 
  Alcahuiza. 
  One 
  day 
  when 
  Mayta 
  and 
  some 
  of 
  his 
  friends 
  

   were 
  playing 
  with 
  the 
  Alcahuiza 
  boys, 
  they 
  fought 
  over 
  who 
  should 
  

   draw 
  water 
  first 
  from 
  a 
  spring, 
  and 
  Mayta 
  broke 
  the 
  leg 
  of 
  the 
  Alca- 
  

   huiza 
  chief's 
  son. 
  Furious, 
  the 
  Alcahuiza 
  sent 
  10 
  warriors 
  to 
  raid 
  the 
  

   Inca 
  town 
  and 
  kill 
  Mayta 
  and 
  his 
  father. 
  Mayta, 
  who 
  was 
  playing 
  

   ball 
  in 
  his 
  courtyard 
  when 
  the 
  raiders 
  arrived, 
  turned 
  on 
  them 
  imme- 
  

   diately 
  and 
  killed 
  two 
  with 
  the 
  balls 
  with 
  which 
  he 
  was 
  playing. 
  The 
  

   rest 
  fled 
  precipitately. 
  

  

  Lloque 
  Yupanqui, 
  man 
  of 
  peace, 
  begged 
  his 
  son 
  to 
  stop 
  provoking 
  

   the 
  neighbors, 
  but 
  the 
  Inca 
  warriors 
  were 
  spoiling 
  for 
  a 
  fight 
  and 
  told 
  

   the 
  old 
  man 
  to 
  let 
  his 
  son 
  alone. 
  The 
  Alcahuiza 
  now 
  came 
  in 
  force 
  and 
  

   Mayta's 
  forces 
  repulsed 
  the 
  attackers 
  in 
  a 
  pitched 
  battle. 
  The 
  Alca- 
  

   huiza 
  next 
  attacked 
  the 
  Inca's 
  house 
  compound, 
  but 
  without 
  success. 
  

   Feeling 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  now 
  sufficiently 
  proved 
  his 
  manhood, 
  Mayta 
  

   went 
  through 
  the 
  maturity 
  rite 
  and 
  became 
  a 
  full-fledged 
  warrior. 
  In 
  

   a 
  final 
  pitched 
  battle, 
  a 
  hailstorm 
  broke 
  over 
  the 
  Alcahuiza, 
  and 
  the 
  

   Inca, 
  encouraged 
  by 
  this 
  sign 
  of 
  divine 
  favor, 
  decisively 
  defeated 
  the 
  

   enemy 
  and 
  captured 
  their 
  chief, 
  ending 
  the 
  bitter 
  struggle. 
  (Sar- 
  

   miento, 
  1906, 
  ch. 
  17; 
  Cieza, 
  1880, 
  bk. 
  2, 
  chs. 
  32-33; 
  Cobo, 
  1890-95, 
  

   bk. 
  12, 
  ch. 
  7.) 
  

  

  Comments: 
  A 
  whole 
  cycle 
  of 
  stories 
  of 
  this 
  sort 
  surrounds 
  the 
  figure 
  

   of 
  Yahuar 
  Huacac, 
  seventh 
  Inca 
  ruler, 
  and 
  others 
  cover 
  the 
  Chanca 
  

   war 
  in 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  Viracocha 
  and 
  Pachacuti. 
  Indeed, 
  dramatic 
  ele- 
  

   ments 
  of 
  mythical 
  character 
  continued 
  to 
  appear 
  in 
  Inca 
  narrative 
  

   poetry 
  until 
  at 
  least 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  Conquest. 
  The 
  following 
  is 
  

   another 
  sample. 
  

  

  The 
  coming 
  oj 
  the 
  pestilence. 
  — 
  One 
  midnight 
  when 
  Huayna 
  Capac 
  

   was 
  campaigning 
  around 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  Guayaquil, 
  he 
  had 
  a 
  vision 
  in 
  

   which 
  he 
  saw 
  the 
  camp 
  surrounded 
  by 
  half 
  a 
  million 
  ghosts, 
  the 
  souls 
  

   of 
  living 
  men, 
  arrayed 
  as 
  if 
  to 
  attack 
  him. 
  In 
  great 
  fear, 
  the 
  Emperor 
  

   took 
  his 
  army 
  back 
  to 
  Quito, 
  where 
  they 
  celebrated 
  the 
  festival 
  of 
  

   qhapaq 
  raymi. 
  Then 
  one 
  day, 
  a 
  messenger 
  arrived 
  wearing 
  a 
  black 
  

   cloak 
  and 
  carrying 
  a 
  small 
  covered 
  box 
  (p'ote) 
  with 
  the 
  cover 
  fastened. 
  

   The 
  Emperor 
  ordered 
  him 
  to 
  open 
  it, 
  but 
  the 
  messenger 
  begged 
  his 
  

   forgiveness, 
  saying 
  that 
  he 
  came 
  by 
  command 
  of 
  the 
  Creator, 
  and 
  that 
  

   the 
  Emperor 
  himself 
  should 
  open 
  the 
  box. 
  Huayna 
  Capac 
  unfastened 
  

   the 
  cover, 
  whereupon 
  a 
  host 
  of 
  moths 
  and 
  butterflies 
  came 
  out 
  and 
  

   disappeared 
  into 
  the 
  air. 
  They 
  were 
  the 
  pestilence, 
  which 
  swept 
  the 
  

   Inca 
  camp 
  until 
  even 
  the 
  Emperor 
  himself 
  died 
  of 
  it 
  (Pachacuti, 
  1879, 
  

   p. 
  307). 
  

  

  Comments 
  : 
  These 
  examples 
  indicate 
  the 
  character 
  and 
  scope 
  of 
  Inca 
  

   folklore. 
  Abundant 
  materials 
  have 
  been 
  preserved, 
  but 
  never 
  care- 
  

   fully 
  studied. 
  In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  authors 
  cited, 
  Morua, 
  (1922-25) 
  and 
  

   Cabello 
  (ms. 
  and 
  1840) 
  contain 
  much 
  folklore 
  material. 
  Considerable 
  

  

  595682—46 
  23 
  

  

  