money. His lieutenant Payo Romero was a brutal soldier whose career of rapine and murder was put a stop to, by a revolt of the long-suffering Indians.[1]
The Adelantado Pascual de Andagoya, after he had arranged his affairs in Spain in the best way he could, returned to the Indies in 1546 with the Licentiate Pedro de la Gasca, who was sent out with full powers to put an end to the civil discord caused by the ambition of Gonzalo Pizarro in Peru. Andagoya eventually reached the port of Manta, in the fleet of Gasca, where death closed his eventful career.
He was a brave and honest oflicer, but he lacked that reckless audacity and self-reliance which were essential for success in those rough and lawless times. Thus Pizarro forestalled him in the discovery of Peru, and he never stood a chance against the bold and unscrupulous Belalcazar, in the struggle for the government of Popayan. The historian Oviedo, who knew him well during the early days of the Darien colony, speaks of him as a noble-minded and virtuous person. He was a man of some education, and his humane treatment of the Indians entitles his name to honourable mention in any history of Spanish conquest in South America. The contrast between his conduct to the natives, and that of Belalcazar, is most striking.
The personal narrative of such an eye witness of some of the leading events which led to the discovery and conquest of Peru, is certainly a most valuable addition to our knowledge of those stirring times.
- ↑ See my translation of Cieza de Leon, p. 107.
