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to him by the native interpreter, Filipillo. He nodded abruptly, as if he had heard enough. “Tam the subject of no man," he replied. I am the greatest king on earth. Your emperor may be great,” he conceded, "and for that, I am willing to be his brother, and to welcome his subjects to my land. But this Pope of whom you speak, he must be a very crazy man if he thinks he can give away countries which do not belong to him. As for my faith, I will not change it. Your God was put to death by the same men he creat- ed. But mine," he concluded, pointing to the gleaming rays of the sun descending behind the mountains, “still lives in the skies, and looks down upon his children." Atahualpa seemed to ponder on his own words for a moment, ' then he said harshly, "By what authority do you say these things to me?" Holding up his bible, Valverde replied, "This is my authority.” Atahualpa took the bible, and examined it, then, with an impa- tient shrug, tossed it to the ground, and angrily cried, "Where are your friends, who have committed crimes against my people? I will not leave this place until they have answered for the many wrongs they have done!" The priest, deeply shocked by the insult showed to the sacred book, stepped back a pace, and crossed himself. He stayed only to pick up the bible, and hurried away to inform Pizarro of what had occurred. "Tell your captain that I am keeping a fast, which will end tomorrow morning. I will then visit him, with my chieftains. In the meantime, let him occupy the public buildings on the square, and no other, till I come, when I will order what shall be done." Hernando de Soto had noticed throughout the audience that Atahualpa kept regarding his horse with some interest. He decided to give the Inca a demonstration of his horsemanship. Letting go his grip on the rein, he spurred the spirited stallion into a furious gallop over open ground, then, wheeling him this way and that, showed all his elegant movements, Suddenly, tuning the horse around, he charged at full gallop straight at Atahualpa, halting at the very last moment, so close to the seated monarch that foam from the stallion’s sides splashed the royal robes. Atahualpa showed not the least concern, but remained just as impassive as before. Some of his warriors, however, reacted with cries of terror. That same night, we are told, Atahualpa had them put to death ‘for showing unworthy weak- ness in front of the Spanish strangers’. Hernando Pizarro and Soto returned to the central plaza in a despondent mood, having calculated the military strength of Atahualpa to be fifty thousand well disciplined warriors. Comparing that awesome number with their own diminutive force, the Spanish cause seemed doomed. Pizarro was not to be downcast by their misgivings. He had a plan, which he intended to put into operation when Atahualpa visited them the next day. His plan was to ambush the Peruvian emperor, and make him their prisoner. It was noon the following day when the sentry posted at the top of the fortress cried out that the Indians were coming. The Inca, Atahualpa, seated on a throne of massive gold, was being carried in great pomp on a gorgeous litter, or palanquin, by four of his chief noblemen. The palanquin was richly covered with plates of gold and silver, and magnificently decorated with the dazzling coloured plumes of tropical birds. The raiment of the monarch was splendid vicuna robes of the finest texture. Golden ornaments were in his hair, and the imperial borla, or diadem, encircled his head. Around his neck he wore a superb collar of emeralds of unusual size and radiance. Accompanying Atahualpa was a vast concourse of his most prominent subjects. There were princes and noblemen, and his courtiers and military men, all dressed in their best finery. And as it was a festive occasion not one person was armed. In front of the long proces- sion slowly advancing toward the city, hundreds of menials swept the road clear of litter, and sung songs of praise as they came, “which in our ears," says one of the conquistadors, "sounded like the songs of hell!" In precise military fashion the leading columns of the procession filed into the extensive square, or plaza, and parted to the left and right to allow the royal party to pass through without hindrance. It was late after- noon by the time five or six thousand Peruvians had entered the square, Not a single Spaniard was in sight. “Where are the strangers?” demanded Atahualpa. Just then, Pizarro’s chaplain, a Dominican friar, Vencente de Valverde, stepped out into the open, with a bible in one hand and a crucifix in the other, and told the Inca that he has been com- manded to expound the true faith. A long rambling speech fol- lowed, covering everything from the Creation to the Ascension, very little of which the Inca could understand though he listened in respectful silence. Valverde then went on to beseech Atahualpa to renounce his own beliefs and embrace those of the Christians. Finally, he called on the Inca to acknowledge him- self a vassal of the Emperor Charles the Fifth. The face of Atahualpa grew darker as the words of the priest were explained “Why do we waste our breath talking to the dog?" growled Valverde. Pizarro slyly inquired, “What would you have me do?" "Set on, at once; I absolve you.” Pizarro needed no further prompting. Now was the time for action! He hastened outside, and waved a white scarf in the air. It was the prearranged sign to commence hostilities. In the fortress overlooking the plaza, Pedro de Candia applied a smoul- dering match to the falconet, or small cannon, aimed point blank at the Peruvian crowd; and, almost at once, a lethal shot crashed through them, leaving a swathe of mangled bodies in its path, The resounding roar of the gun, followed by the loud screams of the wounded and terrified natives, signalled the concealed Spaniards to hurry forth. The mail-clad troops rushed into the plaza, shouting their war cries, and brandishing their weapons, and threw themselves upon the astonished, defenceless Indians. They worked mightily on the semi-naked bodies, with swords, axes and pikes, their blows falling at random without mercy. Hernando Pizarro and Soto, each commanding a squadron of cavalry, charged into the crowd, dealing strokes, right and left, with their blood stained swords. Repeatedly, they plunged head- long in the press, forcing it back, or trampling it down under the failing hoofs of their heavy war horses. The Indians, taken by surprise, were thrown into a state of panic. Screaming in terror, they trampled on one another, as they surged back and forth, scarcely knowing in what direction to go to escape the slaughter. Some tried to climb up the walls of the plaza, but they were easi- ly picked off by the arquebusiers and crossbow-men. Others attempted to reach the narrow streets of the city, but they were met by the long pikes of the soldiers posted on the skirts of the crowded square. Every exit was blocked with piles of dead and dying bodies. In vain did the wretched Indians struggle to get away. So great was their fear and anguish, and their frantic exer- tions to avoid the stabbing swords and hewing axes, that one large party of Indians actually burst through a part of the thick stone wall surrounding the plaza! It collapsed, leaving a gap 100 metres wide, — which -_ = to scramble. Once out NEXUS¢41 DECEMBER-JANUARY '93