﻿Vol. 
  2] 
  COMMUNITIES 
  OF 
  CENTRAL 
  PERU 
  — 
  CASTRO 
  POZO 
  489 
  

  

  to 
  them 
  de 
  jure," 
  that 
  is, 
  if 
  they 
  could 
  show, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  Spanish 
  

   law 
  instituted 
  by 
  the 
  Conquest, 
  that 
  they 
  owned 
  their 
  property 
  with 
  

   just 
  title 
  or 
  with 
  immemorial 
  uninterrupted 
  possession. 
  This 
  require- 
  

   ment 
  was 
  impossible 
  for 
  the 
  Indians 
  :o 
  satisfy, 
  and 
  inevitably 
  signified 
  

   the 
  loss 
  of 
  their 
  lands. 
  

  

  The 
  practice 
  of 
  this 
  juridical 
  system 
  eliminated 
  all 
  the 
  collectively 
  

   owned 
  property 
  of 
  the 
  Indians 
  in 
  the 
  Coastal 
  zones 
  and 
  valleys 
  where 
  

   the 
  Spanish 
  cities 
  were 
  founded, 
  and 
  eliminated 
  a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  it 
  in 
  

   the 
  Sierra, 
  wherever 
  the 
  conqueror 
  set 
  his 
  foot 
  and 
  created 
  new 
  towns 
  

   or 
  took 
  possession 
  of 
  the 
  existing 
  ones. 
  In 
  the 
  Coastal 
  zorje, 
  this 
  

   caused 
  the 
  disappearance 
  of 
  the 
  consanguineous 
  community 
  — 
  the 
  

   aboriginal 
  group 
  or 
  ayllu 
  consisting 
  of 
  an 
  extended, 
  endogamous 
  family 
  

   living 
  on 
  lands 
  which 
  it 
  owned 
  communally. 
  Where 
  new 
  communities 
  

   were 
  organized 
  during 
  Colonial 
  times, 
  it 
  was 
  done 
  on 
  lands 
  ceded 
  by 
  

   the 
  kings 
  of 
  Spain 
  to 
  the 
  curacas 
  as 
  composition 
  (composicion) 
  . 
  

   These 
  communities 
  were 
  organized 
  by 
  the 
  descendants 
  of 
  the 
  curacas, 
  

   following 
  the 
  practices 
  of 
  the 
  ayllu. 
  They 
  in 
  no 
  way 
  represented 
  the 
  

   transplantation 
  or 
  influence 
  of 
  the 
  Spanish 
  comunidad, 
  as 
  some 
  

   Spanish 
  sociologists 
  and 
  historians 
  have 
  believed. 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  said 
  that 
  the 
  Indians 
  were 
  scattered 
  in 
  small 
  villages 
  which, 
  

   on 
  the 
  Coast, 
  were 
  located 
  on 
  the 
  slopes 
  and 
  natural 
  knolls 
  or 
  on 
  small 
  

   artificial 
  elevations 
  which 
  they 
  themselves 
  constructed, 
  for 
  protection 
  

   from 
  floods 
  and 
  to 
  guard 
  their 
  properties, 
  and, 
  in 
  the 
  Sierra, 
  were 
  

   situated 
  on 
  hilltops, 
  which 
  were 
  often 
  inaccessible 
  but 
  easily 
  defended. 
  

   The 
  conquerors, 
  masters 
  of 
  the 
  country, 
  considered 
  the 
  natives 
  as 
  

   objects 
  to 
  be 
  appropriated 
  or 
  instruments 
  with 
  which 
  to 
  achieve 
  their 
  

   economic 
  ends. 
  They 
  therefore 
  wanted 
  the 
  Indians 
  in 
  accessible 
  

   locations 
  near 
  their 
  farms 
  and 
  mines, 
  so 
  that 
  they 
  could 
  have 
  no 
  pre- 
  

   text 
  for 
  resistance. 
  Thus, 
  under 
  the 
  guise 
  of 
  aiding, 
  instructing, 
  and 
  

   indoctrinating 
  them 
  "in 
  order 
  that 
  they 
  shall 
  not 
  live 
  scattered 
  in 
  the 
  

   lands 
  and 
  forests, 
  deprived 
  of 
  all 
  spiritual 
  benefit 
  and 
  of 
  living 
  in 
  good 
  

   order 
  (policia)," 
  their 
  reduction 
  (reducci6n) 
  was 
  ordered. 
  This 
  con- 
  

   sisted 
  of 
  compelling 
  them 
  to 
  abandon 
  villages, 
  which 
  were 
  located 
  on 
  

   their 
  original 
  marcas 
  (communal 
  lands) 
  , 
  to 
  move 
  to 
  open, 
  flat 
  places, 
  

   which 
  the 
  conquerors 
  chose. 
  The 
  new 
  towns 
  established 
  on 
  these 
  

   locations 
  included 
  the 
  inhabitants 
  of 
  two, 
  three, 
  or 
  more 
  ayllus 
  which 
  

   were 
  thus 
  reduced 
  to 
  only 
  one 
  community. 
  

  

  Each 
  of 
  the 
  groups 
  reduced 
  in 
  this 
  manner 
  had 
  originally 
  been 
  an 
  

   ayUu 
  and 
  had 
  owned 
  all 
  the 
  lands 
  of 
  its 
  marca. 
  The 
  reductions 
  were 
  

   confronted 
  with 
  difficulties 
  arising 
  from 
  four 
  facts: 
  (a) 
  That 
  in 
  some 
  

   marcas, 
  all 
  the 
  lands 
  had 
  been 
  pastures 
  and 
  the 
  ayllu 
  members 
  had 
  

   engaged 
  solely 
  in 
  herding; 
  (6) 
  that 
  the 
  land 
  of 
  other 
  marcas 
  had 
  

   been 
  partly 
  pasture 
  for 
  herding 
  and 
  partly 
  agricultural 
  land 
  for 
  farm- 
  

   ing 
  without 
  irrigation; 
  (c) 
  that 
  the 
  land 
  of 
  certain 
  marcas 
  had 
  been 
  

   entirely 
  for 
  farming 
  with 
  artificial 
  irrigation, 
  either 
  continuously 
  or 
  

  

  