The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1886-08-04
FRANCISCO PIZARRO.


excellent. >. ID.
FRANCISCO PIZARRO.
Born in shame and Reared Among
Swine, lie Conquers Fame and
Fortune.
Perhaps the history of the western
hemisphere has never furnished a more
wonderful example of the self-made man
than may be found in the person of
Francisco Pizarro. a gentleman who
came to America about 1910, intending
to grow up with the country.
Mr.. Pizarro was born at Truxillo,
Spain, about 1471. His father was a
Spanish colonel of foot and his mother
was peasant girl who admired and
respected the dashing colonel very
much, but felt that she had scruples
about marriage, and so. although years
afterward Francisco tried his best to
make match between his father and
mother, they were never married. 1t is
said that this embittered his whole life.
None but those who have experienced
it can fully realize what it is to have a
thankless parent.
madura. This was her maiden name
which seemed to harmonic well with
her rich, pickled-olive complexion and
so she retained ii all her life Her son
did not have many early advantages.
for he was neglected by his mother and
allowed to grow up in a swineherd,
and it is even said that he was sucked
by swine in his infancy while his giddy
mother joined in the mad whirl at the
skating-rink. We can hardly imagine
anything more pitiable than the condi-
ton of little child left to rustic for
nourishment among the black-and-tan
hogs of Spain while his father played
old sledge on the frontier in the regular
army and his mother stood on her
Spanish head and wrote her cigar-box
name in the atmosphere at the rink.
Poor little Pizarro had none of the
modern advantages, therefore, and his
education was extremely crude. The
historian says that he grew up a bold,
ignorant, and brutal man. He came to
what was then called Spanish-America
at the age of 80 years and assisted Mr.
Balboa in discovering the Pacific Ocean
Having heard of the existence of Peru
with all its wealth, Pizarro secured a
band of self-made men like himself
and lit out for that province for the
purpose of conquering it if he liked it
and bringing home some sold silver
teapots and gold-lined card-receivers.
He was engaged in gathering this line
of goods and working them off on the
pawnbrokers for twenty-one years, dur
ing which time he did not get killed,
but continued to enjoy a reasonable de-
gree of health and strength.
Although Peru at that time was quite
densely populated with an industrious
and wealthy class of natives, Pizarro
subdued her with 10 foot soldiers
armed with old-fashioned muskets that
had these full-Dlown barrels, with muz-
zIes on them like the business end of a
tuba horn, sixty-seven mounted men,
and two toy cannon loaded with carpet
tacks. With no education, and, what
was still harder to bear, the inner con-
sciousness that his parents were plain,
common, everyday people whose posi-
ton in life would not advance him in
the estimation of the Peruvians, he
battled on. His efforts were crowned
with success insomuch that at the close
of the year 1882 peace was declared and
he could breathe the free air once more
without fear of getting a bronze arrow
head mixed up with his kidneys when
his back was turned. For the first
time in two years." says the historian,
''Pizarro was able to take off his tin
helmet and his sheet-iron corset at
night when he lay down to rest, or un-
dismayed to 90 forth bareheaded and
wearing only his crinkled seersucker
coat and a pair of sandals at the twi-
light hour and till midnight wander
| alone amid the famous guano groves of
Peru"
Such is the history of a man who
never even knew how to write his own
name. He won fame for himself and
great wealth without an education or a
long, dark-blue lineage. Pizarro was
like job You know, we sometimes
sing:
Oh, Job, he was a fine young lad,
Sing glory halelujah-
His heart was good but his blood was bad,
Sing glory hallelujah.
So Pizarro could not brag on his
blood and his education was not classi-
| cal He could not write his name,
| though he tried faithfully for many
i years. Day after day during the cam
paign, and late into the night when
the yaller dogs of Lima came forth with
their Peruvian bark. he would get his
orderly sergeant to set him the copy:
Paul may plant and Apollinaris
water, but it is God that giyeth the in
| crease
Then Pizarro would bring out his
writing material and his tongue and
| try to write, but he never could do it
His was not a studious mind. 1t was
more on the ock-down-and-drag-
| order.
Pizarro was made a marquis in after
years. He was also made a corpse.
He acquired the latter position toward
/ the close of his life. He, at one time,
married the inca's daughter and found
ed long line of grandees. marquises.
| and macaroni sculptors. whose names
may be found on the covers of imported
cigar boxes and in the topmost tier of
wrought-iron resorts in our best peni-
| tentiaries.
Pizarro lived very busy life during
| the conquest, some days killing as many
| as seventy and eighty Peruvians be-
/ tween sun and sun. But death at last
crooked his finger at the marquis and
| he slept We all brag and blow our
horn here for few brief years. but
when the grim reaper with his new and
| automatic twine-binder comes along he
gathers us in; the weak and the strong,
the ignorant and the educated, the plain
and the beautiful. the young and the
old, those who have just shifted the
sweet and dew-laden air of life's morn.
ing and those who are footsore and
weary and waiting all alike must bow
low to the sickle that goes on cutting
closer and closer to us even when W.
sleep.
Had Pizarro thought more about this
matter he would have been ahead to
day.-BM Me-, in Chicago Neacs.
i A good old story on its rounds again
A Yankee woman while visiting Eng
land was complimented BY Britisf
afNr