Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-07-31
HIDDEN JHCA TREASURES.
stores Of Gold thu, LIZ Gh,,sunz IN Nous
tain fastuesss.

stores Of Gold ,hs, LIZ Gh,,epnz IN Nous
tain fastuessos.
Writing from Quito. correspondent
OF the Boston Herah rccites the tradI-
ton still preserved in Ecuador relative
to the buried ransom of the last OF the
lncas. The Spaniards under Plzarro,
he says. landed first on the island OF
Puma, at the mouth Of the harbor OF
GuyaQul. and landed upon the main
coast Of Tumbez, in Peru, few miles
southwark. Here they found that the
lncaS, for the first time IN the his
tory Of that remarkable race, were at
war. lluayna-Capac, the greatest OF
the lncaS, made Quito his capital, and
there lived IN a splendor unsurpassed
IN ancient or modern times. At his
death he divided his kingdom into two
parts, giving u Atahualpa the northern
half. and 10 IluaScar what is now
Bolivia and the southern part Of pera.
The two brothers went 20 war. and
while they were engaged in - plz1iro
came. Everybody who has read Pres
colts fascinating volumes knows what
followed. Withthe All Of the Spaniarls,
A,ahaalpa conquered his brother. and
then the Spaniards conquered him.
When he lay prisoner in the hands Of
the guests he offered to fill his prison
with gold if they would release him.
They agreed, and his willing subjects
brought the treasure, but the greedy
Spaniards, slways treachcroas. de-
manded more. and Atahualpa sent for
II. Runners were hurried all over
the country, and the simple. unSel,ish
people surrendered all their wealth 10
save their king. But Pizarro became
tired of waiting for the treasure 10
come, and the men in charge OF It. being
met by the news that AtahIalpa had
been Strangled, buried The gold and
silver in the mountains Of Llaugin,ti.
where the SpaniardS have been search
ing for II ever since.
No amount of persuasion, tcnpta-
ton. or torture could wiring from the
Indians the secrets Of the buried gold.
Two men of modern times are sup
posed TO have known its hiding place.
One Of them, an Indian, became mystic
riouSly rich. and built the church Of san
Francisco III Quito. On his death-bcd he
is said to have revealed TO the priest who
confessed him that his wealth came
from the hidden Inca treasure. but he
died without Importing the knowledge
of its location. Another man, Nalyerde
by name, a Spaniard, married an Inca
woman, and is supposed to have learned
the secret from her, for he Sprans from
abject poverty to the summit OF wealth
almost IN single night, without visit
be means of support" Nalyerde
when he died left as legacy to the
King Of Spain guide to the buried
treasure. Hundreds Of fortunes have
been wasted and hundreds of lives
have been lost in vain attempt
10 follow Nalyerdc'S directions. They
are certainly plain to certain point,
where the trail ends. and cannot he fol-
lowed farther because Of deep raylne,
which the crednlous assert has been
orcned since Nalycrde died by an
earthquake. These searches have been
prosecuted by the Government a well
as by private individuals, and If all the
money that has been spent hunting for
Atahualpa's ransom had been invested
in roads and other internal improve
ments the country would be much rich
er and the people much more prosper
OTIS than they are.
The devotion Of the Indians % the
memory of their king, who was stran-
gled $50 years ago, IS very touching.
When 1.-The last OF the lncas " fell he
left his people in perpetual mourning,
and the women wear nothing but black
to-day. 1t is pathetic custom for the
race not to show upon their costumes
the slightest hint Of color. over
short, black skirt thcy wear a sort Of
mantle, which resembles IN It's appear
ance as well as in it, use, the "manta"
that Is worn by the ladies' Of Peru, and
the mantilla" Of Spain. l. IS drawn
over their ioreheads and across the
chin. and pinned between the shoul lers.
This sombre costume gives them nun
like appearance, which is heightened by
the Stealthy, silent way IN which they
dart through the streets. The cloth
Is woven on their own native looms
of the wool Of the llama and the
yicunaS. and is soft, fine tex
tore While the Indians have accepted
the Catholic religion. three hundred
and fifty years Of submission have not
entirely divorced them from the ancient
rites they practiced under their original
civilization. Several times a year they
have feastS or celebrations to COM
memOrate some event in Inca history,
and, like the Aztecs in Mexico, they
still cling to hope that future ages
may restore the dynasty under which
their fathers lived and destroy the hated
Spaniards.