﻿Vol. 
  2] 
  HIGHLAND 
  TRIBES, 
  S. 
  COLOMBIA 
  — 
  HERNANDEZ 
  DE 
  ALBA 
  925 
  

  

  The 
  King 
  of 
  Spain, 
  receiving 
  word 
  of 
  the 
  troubles 
  in 
  this 
  region, 
  

   ordered 
  Don 
  Juan 
  de 
  Borja, 
  his 
  Governor 
  at 
  Santa 
  Fe, 
  to 
  carry 
  out 
  

   the 
  " 
  pacification 
  of 
  the 
  province/ 
  ' 
  meaning 
  the 
  extermination 
  of 
  its 
  

   inhabitants. 
  The 
  decisive 
  war 
  started 
  in 
  Chaparral 
  in 
  1605 
  and 
  ended 
  

   in 
  1608 
  when 
  a 
  Spanish 
  witness 
  wrote 
  of 
  this 
  territory, 
  where 
  the 
  

   Pdez 
  had 
  remained 
  free 
  for 
  so 
  many 
  years, 
  that 
  the 
  provinces 
  "were 
  

   so 
  desolated 
  that 
  the 
  troops 
  could 
  not 
  find 
  Indians 
  to 
  fight, 
  houses 
  to 
  

   plunder, 
  or 
  roots 
  or 
  grain 
  to 
  eat, 
  and, 
  if 
  some 
  Indian 
  remained, 
  in- 
  

   stead 
  of 
  daring 
  to 
  plant 
  boldly, 
  he 
  sowed 
  four 
  handfuls 
  of 
  grain 
  here, 
  

   two 
  more 
  there 
  in 
  the 
  shadows 
  and 
  cover 
  of 
  the 
  trees 
  . 
  . 
  . 
  they 
  went 
  

   about 
  harrassed, 
  thin, 
  and 
  emaciated 
  until 
  life 
  was 
  ended, 
  for 
  the 
  

   soldiers 
  saw 
  corpses 
  of 
  people 
  dead 
  of 
  hunger 
  or 
  sickness 
  at 
  every 
  step" 
  

   (Sim6n, 
  1882-92, 
  Septima 
  Noticia, 
  ch. 
  49, 
  vol. 
  5, 
  pp. 
  314-15). 
  A 
  docu- 
  

   ment 
  in 
  the 
  ecclesiastical 
  archives 
  of 
  Paez, 
  dated 
  July 
  17, 
  1638, 
  states 
  

   that 
  in 
  the 
  lands 
  adjoining 
  the 
  Pdez 
  there 
  lived 
  a 
  Pijao 
  Indian 
  named 
  

   Ambrosio, 
  who 
  had 
  said 
  that 
  Captain 
  Andres 
  de 
  Zuniga 
  could 
  now 
  

   well 
  enjoy 
  this 
  country 
  because 
  there 
  were 
  Pijao 
  but 
  not 
  Pdez 
  Indians 
  

   in 
  it 
  and 
  because 
  the 
  Pijdo 
  saw 
  themselves 
  doomed 
  and 
  the 
  land 
  

   had 
  no 
  proprietor. 
  

  

  The 
  Guanaca, 
  who, 
  because 
  their 
  chief 
  was 
  an 
  enemy 
  of 
  the 
  Pdez 
  

   chief, 
  had 
  allied 
  themselves 
  with 
  the 
  Spaniards 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  attack 
  the 
  

   Pdez, 
  were 
  the 
  first 
  to 
  surrender 
  and 
  join 
  a 
  Spanish 
  colony. 
  The 
  first 
  

   road 
  between 
  Popayan 
  and 
  Santa 
  Fe 
  passed 
  through 
  their 
  territory, 
  

   where 
  the 
  Spaniards 
  established 
  a 
  hostelry 
  for 
  traders. 
  This 
  dis- 
  

   trict 
  was 
  given 
  to 
  the 
  Jesuits, 
  who 
  established 
  the 
  Church 
  of 
  

   Guanacas 
  and, 
  later, 
  a 
  town 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  name. 
  But 
  the 
  Indians 
  felt 
  

   another 
  lethal 
  force 
  of 
  European 
  origin 
  — 
  disease 
  which 
  they 
  were 
  

   unable 
  to 
  withstand. 
  In 
  1790, 
  a 
  smallpox 
  epidemic 
  so 
  reduced 
  them 
  

   that 
  they 
  abandoned 
  their 
  town, 
  and 
  the 
  few 
  survivors 
  retired 
  to 
  the 
  

   narrow 
  mesa, 
  where 
  the 
  modern 
  town 
  of 
  Inza 
  is 
  situated. 
  Here 
  they 
  

   gradually 
  disappeared 
  altogether. 
  

  

  The 
  Pdez 
  continued 
  to 
  resist 
  and 
  defend 
  their 
  lands 
  against 
  Spanish 
  

   missionization, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  road 
  to 
  Guanaca 
  never 
  became 
  secure. 
  

   The 
  extinction 
  of 
  the 
  Pijao, 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  important 
  quantities 
  of 
  gold 
  

   in 
  the 
  area, 
  and 
  the 
  difficulty 
  of 
  the 
  terrain, 
  which 
  was 
  such 
  that 
  the 
  

   Chronicler 
  Pedro 
  de 
  Aguado 
  said 
  "to 
  travel 
  through 
  Pdez 
  territory 
  is 
  

   to 
  go 
  up 
  and 
  down," 
  caused 
  the 
  Spaniards 
  to 
  abandon 
  interest 
  in 
  

   dominating 
  these 
  peoples. 
  They 
  were 
  content 
  to 
  establish 
  the 
  Gua- 
  

   nacas 
  mission, 
  and, 
  a 
  little 
  later, 
  the 
  parish 
  of 
  Talaga. 
  Subsequently, 
  

   as 
  these 
  Indians, 
  who 
  were 
  isolated 
  in 
  their 
  high 
  mountains, 
  were 
  al- 
  

   lowed 
  to 
  retain 
  their 
  customs 
  and 
  beliefs 
  without 
  interference, 
  they 
  

   did 
  not 
  protest 
  when 
  small 
  groups 
  of 
  Whites 
  peacefully 
  occupied 
  cer- 
  

   tain 
  places 
  in 
  their 
  lands. 
  

  

  Thus 
  began 
  the 
  true 
  Colonial 
  Period 
  for 
  those 
  tribes 
  which 
  survived 
  

   the 
  wars 
  of 
  the 
  Conquest. 
  The 
  encomienda 
  system 
  was 
  inaugurated, 
  

  

  