﻿486 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  To 
  cultivate 
  the 
  land 
  and 
  to 
  construct 
  and 
  repair 
  the 
  irrigation 
  

   works 
  and 
  roads, 
  individual 
  labor 
  was 
  required 
  as 
  a 
  public 
  service 
  after 
  

   the 
  establishment 
  of 
  the 
  ayllu. 
  Each 
  man 
  had 
  to 
  work 
  by 
  mitas, 
  

   i. 
  e., 
  in 
  turns, 
  in 
  agriculture 
  and 
  in 
  other 
  public 
  services. 
  The 
  workers 
  

   were 
  organized 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  quarters 
  of 
  the 
  little 
  villages, 
  the 
  men 
  

   of 
  each 
  quarter 
  constituting 
  a 
  group 
  called 
  chunca. 
  The 
  chuncas 
  not 
  

   only 
  took 
  turns 
  but 
  each 
  had 
  the 
  responsibility 
  for 
  a 
  certain 
  proportion 
  

   of 
  the 
  total 
  labor 
  which 
  was 
  assigned 
  to 
  it. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  also 
  possible 
  that 
  the 
  ayllu 
  system 
  brought 
  about 
  the 
  division 
  

   of 
  lands 
  into 
  small 
  family 
  tracts 
  and 
  the 
  custom 
  whereby 
  all 
  members 
  

   of 
  the 
  ayllu 
  collectively 
  performed 
  the 
  farm 
  labor 
  on 
  each 
  tract 
  — 
  

   a 
  form 
  of 
  cooperation 
  in 
  mutual 
  services 
  which 
  excluded 
  any 
  kind 
  of 
  

   remuneration. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  Empire, 
  these 
  obligatory 
  services 
  within 
  each 
  ayllu 
  

   came 
  to 
  be 
  thoroughly 
  regulated 
  by 
  the 
  State 
  Government. 
  For 
  this 
  

   purpose, 
  the 
  families 
  and 
  towns 
  were 
  registered 
  and 
  divided 
  by 
  re- 
  

   gions 
  in 
  groups 
  of 
  10, 
  100, 
  and 
  1,000, 
  and 
  for 
  each 
  unit 
  a 
  chief 
  was 
  

   named 
  whose 
  duties 
  were 
  to 
  oversee 
  the 
  fulfillment 
  of 
  the 
  services. 
  

   Idleness 
  and 
  laziness 
  were 
  punished 
  as 
  crimes, 
  in 
  accordance 
  with 
  

   public 
  opinion. 
  The 
  mita, 
  or 
  obligation 
  to 
  perform 
  public 
  work, 
  was 
  

   rigorously 
  imposed 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  all 
  services 
  to 
  the 
  Empire, 
  which 
  thus 
  

   came 
  to 
  have 
  enormous 
  contingents 
  of 
  men 
  at 
  its 
  disposal. 
  This 
  state 
  

   labor 
  was 
  devoted 
  to 
  the 
  construction 
  and 
  improvement 
  of 
  aqueducts, 
  

   bridges, 
  roads, 
  temples, 
  palaces, 
  and 
  fortresses, 
  to 
  the 
  care 
  of 
  the 
  flocks, 
  

   to 
  work 
  in 
  the 
  fields, 
  and 
  to 
  fighting 
  in 
  the 
  conquests, 
  in 
  accordance 
  

   with 
  the 
  imperialist 
  policies 
  of 
  the 
  Inca. 
  

  

  As 
  the 
  men 
  devoted 
  all 
  their 
  time 
  to 
  these 
  services, 
  the 
  Inca 
  State 
  

   provided 
  them 
  with 
  shelter 
  and 
  food. 
  Those 
  who 
  fought 
  with 
  the 
  

   army 
  in 
  the 
  field 
  or 
  who 
  occupied 
  recently 
  conquered 
  towns 
  were 
  pro- 
  

   vided 
  food, 
  clothing, 
  and 
  arms 
  ; 
  those 
  who 
  gave 
  their 
  services 
  on 
  public 
  

   works 
  received 
  a 
  ration 
  of 
  food. 
  According 
  to 
  Garcilaso 
  de 
  la 
  Vega, 
  

   those 
  who 
  worked 
  the 
  lands 
  of 
  the 
  Sun, 
  of 
  the 
  Emperor, 
  and 
  of 
  widows 
  

   and 
  orphans, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  those 
  in 
  the 
  army, 
  all 
  were 
  supported 
  by 
  the 
  

   State. 
  It 
  was 
  ordered 
  that 
  the 
  customary 
  work 
  on 
  the 
  tasks 
  pertain- 
  

   ing 
  to 
  the 
  ayllu 
  itself 
  be 
  respected. 
  

  

  The 
  storage 
  of 
  grains 
  and 
  tubers, 
  and 
  of 
  fibers 
  and 
  hides 
  for 
  clothing, 
  

   was 
  organized. 
  These 
  goods 
  were 
  kept 
  in 
  public 
  tambos 
  or 
  tambus, 
  

   which 
  were 
  veritable 
  regional 
  storehouses, 
  and 
  were 
  distributed 
  to 
  

   those 
  who 
  needed 
  them. 
  Wool 
  and 
  cotton 
  were 
  allotted 
  to 
  women, 
  

   children, 
  and 
  old 
  men, 
  who 
  had 
  the 
  task 
  of 
  spinning 
  and 
  weaving. 
  

  

  The 
  Inca 
  State 
  did 
  not 
  provide 
  any 
  other 
  necessities 
  for 
  its 
  subjects, 
  

   but 
  for 
  its 
  own 
  political 
  convenience 
  it 
  contributed 
  to 
  the 
  cult 
  and 
  to 
  

   the 
  popular 
  religious 
  festivals. 
  After 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  Mayta 
  Capac, 
  edu- 
  

   cation 
  and 
  instruction 
  were 
  granted 
  only 
  to 
  the 
  privileged 
  classes. 
  3 
  

  

  8 
  See 
  Rowe, 
  this 
  volume, 
  pp. 
  282, 
  293, 
  for 
  the 
  religious 
  and 
  educational 
  practices 
  of 
  the 
  Inca. 
  

  

  