﻿Vol.2] 
  COMECHINGON 
  AND 
  NEIGHBORS 
  — 
  APARICIO 
  675 
  

  

  importance, 
  the 
  "Probanza 
  de 
  Meritos 
  y 
  Servicios 
  de 
  Pedro 
  Gonzalez 
  

   de 
  Prado" 
  (Levillier, 
  1919 
  b). 
  

  

  The 
  three 
  above-mentioned 
  authors 
  had 
  as 
  their 
  only 
  source 
  of 
  in- 
  

   formation 
  the 
  testimony 
  of 
  the 
  survivors 
  of 
  the 
  expedition. 
  They 
  

   differ 
  in 
  the 
  order 
  of 
  the 
  events, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  obvious 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  confusion 
  

   in 
  the 
  accounts. 
  The 
  account 
  of 
  Diego 
  Fernandez 
  (1571) 
  is 
  very 
  

   clear, 
  and 
  is, 
  perhaps, 
  based 
  on 
  written 
  testimonies. 
  After 
  telling 
  of 
  

   the 
  adventures 
  and 
  sufferings 
  of 
  those 
  who 
  took 
  part 
  in 
  the 
  expedition 
  

   through 
  the 
  plains 
  of 
  Tucuman 
  and 
  Santiago 
  del 
  Estero, 
  it 
  says: 
  

  

  They 
  crossed 
  the 
  Andes 
  of 
  Tucuman 
  to 
  the 
  foothills 
  of 
  the 
  sierra. 
  They 
  crossed 
  

   them 
  and 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  Indians 
  of 
  that 
  region 
  were 
  brown, 
  tall 
  with 
  beards 
  like 
  

   Christians. 
  They 
  do 
  not 
  have 
  poisoned 
  arrows. 
  

  

  El 
  Palentino 
  (1571) 
  gives 
  us 
  ethnographic 
  data 
  of 
  great 
  interest 
  

   about 
  C6rdoba, 
  and 
  tells 
  us 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  the 
  inhabitants, 
  "Comechin- 
  

   gones," 
  misspelled 
  sometimes 
  as"Chinchagones." 
  

  

  Gutierrez 
  de 
  Santa 
  Clara 
  (1850) 
  in 
  various 
  passages 
  is 
  so 
  close 
  to 
  El 
  

   Palentino 
  that 
  he 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  had 
  the 
  same 
  informant, 
  but 
  his 
  

   account 
  is 
  somewhat 
  inferior, 
  as 
  the 
  narrative 
  is 
  involved 
  and 
  mixes 
  

   up 
  the 
  order 
  of 
  events. 
  

  

  Cieza 
  de 
  Leon 
  (1909) 
  begins 
  his 
  account 
  with 
  the 
  expedition 
  in 
  the 
  

   1 
  1 
  Guerra 
  de 
  Chupas 
  ' 
  \ 
  and 
  ends 
  it 
  with 
  the 
  ' 
  i 
  Guerra 
  de 
  Quito 
  . 
  ' 
  ' 
  Every- 
  

   thing 
  here 
  is 
  surprisingly 
  vague, 
  confused, 
  and 
  incorrect 
  for 
  so 
  great 
  a 
  

   chronicler. 
  In 
  this 
  chaos 
  of 
  data, 
  there 
  are 
  a 
  few 
  items 
  of 
  great 
  in- 
  

   terest, 
  but 
  others 
  must 
  be 
  used 
  cautiously. 
  

  

  The 
  "Probanza" 
  of 
  Pedro 
  Gonzalez, 
  presented 
  in 
  the 
  city 
  of 
  Cuzco 
  

   in 
  1548, 
  2 
  years 
  after 
  the 
  expedition, 
  is 
  particularly 
  valuable, 
  es- 
  

   pecially 
  where 
  anthropology 
  is 
  concerned. 
  This 
  document, 
  published 
  

   by 
  Levillier 
  (1919 
  b) 
  is 
  a 
  rich 
  account 
  of 
  Diego 
  de 
  Rojas' 
  expedition, 
  

   and, 
  with 
  El 
  Palentino's 
  report, 
  to 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  superior, 
  constitutes 
  a 
  

   unique 
  body 
  of 
  information. 
  While 
  Francisco 
  de 
  Mendoza 
  continued 
  

   his 
  discoveries 
  toward 
  the 
  Rio 
  de 
  la 
  Plata, 
  Prado 
  remained 
  in 
  the 
  Prov- 
  

   ince 
  of 
  the 
  Comechingones 
  in 
  direct 
  touch 
  with 
  the 
  natives, 
  whose 
  

   cause 
  he 
  abetted. 
  This 
  gave 
  him 
  authoritative 
  knowledge 
  of 
  their 
  

   customs, 
  especially 
  their 
  warfare. 
  

  

  Some 
  years 
  later 
  the 
  country 
  was 
  finally 
  occupied 
  and 
  cities 
  were 
  

   founded. 
  Jeronimo 
  Luis 
  de 
  Cabrera 
  extended 
  the 
  conquest 
  toward 
  the 
  

   south 
  and 
  founded 
  C6rdoba. 
  This 
  governor 
  showed 
  more 
  interest 
  in 
  

   Indians 
  than 
  most 
  captains 
  of 
  his 
  time. 
  This 
  explains 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  

   the 
  "Relaci6n 
  e 
  suma 
  de 
  latierray 
  poblazones 
  que 
  don 
  geronimo 
  Luis 
  

   de 
  cabrera 
  gouernador 
  de 
  las 
  prouincias 
  de 
  los 
  Juries 
  ha 
  descubierto 
  

   donde 
  va 
  a 
  poblar 
  in 
  nombre 
  de 
  Su 
  magestad 
  una 
  ciudad." 
  This 
  

   anonymous, 
  undated 
  document 
  was 
  written 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  estab- 
  

   lishment 
  of 
  C6rdoba, 
  and 
  if 
  the 
  author 
  was 
  not 
  Cabrera 
  himself, 
  he 
  

   must 
  have 
  been 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  lieutenants. 
  

  

  