316 



HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



Tezcuco, Mi&lan, Guatufco, and many other places of 

 that kingdom, would be fufficient to evince the truth of 

 what we have afferted, and make M. de Paw blufh at 

 his rafhnefs and indifcretion. 



In regard to Peru, although Acofta confefles that lime 

 was not in ufe there, and that its natives neither con- 

 ftru&ed arches nor bridges of ftone ; which circumftan- 

 ces proved fufficient for M. de Paw to fay, that the ufe 

 of lime was totally unknown in all America ; notwith- 

 standing Acofla, who was no vulgar man, and neither 

 exaggerated nor extenuated fa£h with refpect to the 

 Americans, gives much praife to the wonderful induftry 

 of the Peruvians for their bridges of totora or reeds at 

 the mouth of the lake of Titicaca, and in other places, 

 where the immenfe depth, or the extraordinary rapidity 

 of the rivers, did not permit them to make bridges of 

 ftone, or made the ufe of boats dangerous. He affirms 

 to have pafTed fuch kind of bridges and boats, and alfo 

 the eafmefs and fecurity of the paflage. M. de Paw 

 takes upon him to fay, that the Peruvians did not know 

 the ufe of boats, that they did not make windows to their 

 houfes. and even fufpe&s that their houfes had no roofs. 

 Thefe are the abfurd fpeculations in the clofet of a writer 

 on America : he makes it very clear, that he does riot 

 know any thing of the bejucos of the Peruvian bridges, 

 and that he has formed no idea of the rivers of South 

 America. 



SECT. 



