﻿Vol.2] 
  TRIBES 
  OF 
  ECUADOR 
  — 
  MURRA 
  793 
  

  

  they 
  found 
  the 
  Quito, 
  a 
  weak, 
  insignificant, 
  and 
  poorly 
  organized 
  

   nation. 
  They 
  conquered 
  the 
  Quito, 
  and 
  northern 
  Ecuador 
  fell 
  to 
  the 
  

   invaders. 
  At 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  Chimborazo 
  Province, 
  the 
  Schyri 
  met 
  

   the 
  strong 
  Puruhd 
  " 
  Kingdom.' 
  ' 
  Unable 
  to 
  conquer 
  through 
  weight 
  

   of 
  arms, 
  the 
  Schyri 
  used 
  diplomacy 
  and 
  soon 
  married 
  his 
  daughter, 
  Toa, 
  

   to 
  Duchicela, 
  the 
  Puruhd 
  Crown 
  Prince. 
  A 
  strong 
  kingdom 
  was 
  thereby 
  

   formed 
  extending 
  from 
  the 
  Mira 
  to 
  the 
  Chanchan 
  Kiver. 
  Even- 
  

   tually, 
  the 
  Inca 
  defeated 
  and 
  broke 
  this 
  organization, 
  the 
  last 
  Schyri, 
  

   Cacha, 
  being 
  killed 
  at 
  Atuntaqui. 
  His 
  daughter, 
  Paccha, 
  was 
  wed 
  to 
  

   Huayna 
  Capac, 
  the 
  conqueror. 
  Atahuallpa, 
  the 
  last 
  Inca 
  Emperor, 
  

   was 
  her 
  son. 
  

  

  Velasco 
  also 
  gives 
  long 
  lists 
  of 
  alleged 
  aboriginal 
  tribes 
  and 
  settle- 
  

   ments 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  details 
  of 
  life 
  and 
  its 
  organization 
  under 
  Schyri 
  rule. 
  

   He 
  gives 
  no 
  details 
  of 
  subsistence 
  activities, 
  but 
  states 
  that 
  land 
  was 
  

   held 
  individually 
  and 
  could 
  be 
  inherited. 
  The 
  people 
  wore 
  clothes 
  of 
  

   wool, 
  cotton, 
  and 
  hide, 
  and 
  were 
  skilled 
  craftsmen. 
  They 
  were 
  a 
  belli- 
  

   cose 
  people, 
  wielding 
  axes, 
  spears, 
  and 
  clubs 
  against 
  their 
  enemies. 
  

   Every 
  warrior 
  wore 
  a 
  feather 
  crown, 
  and, 
  in 
  addition, 
  the 
  Schyri 
  wore 
  

   a 
  large 
  emerald 
  on 
  his 
  forehead. 
  Commoners 
  were 
  monogamous, 
  but 
  

   the 
  King 
  could 
  add 
  an 
  indefinite 
  number 
  of 
  concubines 
  to 
  a 
  chief 
  wife. 
  

   The 
  crown 
  descended 
  in 
  the 
  male 
  line, 
  women 
  being 
  excluded. 
  The 
  

   sister's 
  son 
  inherited 
  the 
  throne 
  in 
  absence 
  of 
  a 
  direct 
  heir. 
  The 
  Sun 
  

   and 
  the 
  Moon 
  were 
  worshiped, 
  stone 
  temples 
  being 
  erected 
  in 
  their 
  

   honor. 
  Mounds 
  were 
  built 
  for 
  burial 
  purposes. 
  

  

  Although 
  doubt 
  had 
  been 
  cast 
  on 
  the 
  veracity 
  of 
  Velasco 
  's 
  account 
  

   as 
  early 
  as 
  1880 
  by 
  Jimenez 
  de 
  la 
  Espada, 
  the 
  story 
  had 
  considerable 
  

   acceptance 
  in 
  learned 
  circles 
  insofar 
  as 
  its 
  two 
  important 
  historical 
  

   points 
  are 
  concerned: 
  that 
  the 
  Car 
  a 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  Highlands 
  from 
  the 
  

   west 
  after 
  a 
  sea 
  journey 
  and 
  that 
  they 
  had 
  organized 
  a 
  functioning 
  

   kingdom 
  or 
  confederation 
  which 
  included 
  the 
  peoples 
  of 
  northern 
  and 
  

   central 
  Ecuador. 
  About 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  World 
  War, 
  Jij6n 
  y 
  Caa- 
  

   mano 
  reopened 
  the 
  matter 
  by 
  asserting 
  that 
  the 
  whole 
  story 
  was 
  a 
  

   hoax, 
  an 
  uncritical 
  compilation 
  of 
  oral 
  traditions 
  and 
  legends 
  prev- 
  

   alent 
  in 
  the 
  18th 
  century. 
  Jijon's 
  statement 
  started 
  a 
  bitter 
  de- 
  

   bate 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  raging 
  ever 
  since. 
  It 
  would 
  seem 
  that 
  Jij6n's 
  

   point 
  has 
  been 
  fairly 
  well 
  proved 
  by 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  none 
  of 
  the 
  16th- 
  and 
  

   17th-century 
  chroniclers 
  who 
  wrote 
  of 
  Ecuadorean 
  tribes 
  and 
  their 
  

   conquest 
  by 
  the 
  Inca 
  ever 
  mention 
  the 
  Schyri 
  or 
  any 
  such 
  vast 
  kingdom 
  

   or 
  federation. 
  Archeologically, 
  there 
  is 
  also 
  no 
  evidence 
  that 
  a 
  late, 
  

   pre-Inca, 
  overall 
  culture 
  blanketed 
  the 
  Highland 
  area, 
  as 
  would 
  have 
  

   occurred 
  had 
  the 
  Cara 
  actually 
  conquered 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  country. 
  A 
  

   detailed 
  discussion 
  of 
  this 
  controversy 
  can 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  Jij6n's 
  synthesis 
  

   (1941, 
  pp. 
  55-90). 
  

  

  Subsistence. 
  — 
  Like 
  their 
  other 
  Highland 
  neighbors, 
  the 
  Cara 
  were 
  

   farmers, 
  cultivating 
  maize, 
  beans, 
  potatoes, 
  sweet 
  potatoes, 
  altra- 
  

  

  