The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-09-14
TRUE TO
TRADITION.
Indians of South America Still
Retain Odd SuperstitiOns
That Began in the Dawn of Time-Pizarro
Broke Their Spirit and They Are Slaves
to This Day-Power of Coca.

E%ANNY B. WARD. in letter from La
EzS1 Paz, Bolivia, to the PiItsburg Dis
1*A patch, gives some very interesting
in formation concerning the Indians of South
America. The study of Indian character,
writes Mrs. Ward, as shown in the Ayma-
raes and Quichuas of Bolivia, is exceedingly
interesting. Though far out-numbering the
whites. the Government finds no trouble in
keeping them under absolute control,
whatever revolts and disturbances may
arise among the CholOs and other citizens.
Grave, silent and sad when not into xicated,
and never noisy in their most hilarious
moments, always at work, gentle, seryile
and peaceable, they are willing hewers of
wood and drawers Of water, not one iota
above the mules and llamas they drive; in
deed, the latter, as a rule, are better fed and
more kindly treated, because of more COM
mercial value.
Not only is this true Of the poems ON the
great estates, but those who are free to come
and go, work or Starve, as they will, are
slaves no less, and to more cruel masters,
poverty and ignorance. As there is an edu-
cational provis0 in the suffrage law of b.
liva, and as no means are provided for edu-
eating Indians, they are forever bebarred
from having any voice in the affairs OF the
land of their theirs. The ruling class, de-
sceudants OF the Spanish conquerors, assert,
but without truth or reason, that an Indian
is incapable of education and untitled by
nature for any higher plane in life than that
he now occupies, as mere beast of burden.
RELICS OF PAST GREATNESS.
The works of the lucas that still remain
magnificent temples, terraced mountains
and splendid Enthusiastically refute this
statement, and even in these days, after
three centuries and a half of slavery, there
are occasional shining examples of Indians
who have struggled out OF their environ
ment into the highest positions. The COM
mon herd, however, since the spirit of their
ancestors was so thoroughly broken by Pi-
Zarro and his gang, will make no protest
whatever may be put upon them; and the
temptation to keep them In servitnde is too
great to be resisted by the lazy c0nquista-
dores, who may thus enjoy the fruits of I'M
paid labor Having "ChristlaniZed' the
original owners of the soil in the lump, as it
were, and rendered them obedient to the
laws of church and state, the philanthropy
of the white race goes no farther.
When the Spaniards came TO this CONT
nent about $50 years ago, they found nearly
all the vast territory that is now occupied
by Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Chile inhab-
tied by The three great tribes, the Aymaraes,
Chinchas and Huancas, united under one
form of government. The Aymaraes were
the ruling race, and from their number came
the lncaS, or emper0rS. They occupied the
highlands of Peru and Bolivia and were
men more advanced in civilization than
either of the Others. The Chinchas lived
along the coast; the Huancas were scattered
among the mountain valleys and the Qdl-
chuaS came from the north, Quito having
been their ancient capital. Gradually the
Aymaraes conquered the other tribes, and
their system of colonization seems to have
been wiser than any that have superseded it.
According to tradition the Aymaraes had
existed since the beginning OF the world,
but were sunk into barbarism and per-
petually at war with one another, when the
sun, their tutelary divinity, sent his own
children to earth to redeem and instruct
them. Two sun-deities came, Nance Capac
and Mama bella, his sister, who was also
his wife. The island in Lake Titicaca,
where they were believed TO have made
their first appearance, has even since been
regarded as holy, and to this day shows the
remains of their most sacred temples. From
this point Name eaac Travelled northward,
the stick sank into the ground, sign from
the Sun-god that there he should tarry and
found a city. which was called CuZco and
afterward became the imperial capital of
the Incas.
The same idea OF savior of divine pa
rentage runs through many forms of re-
ligion. AS an historical character Nance
Capae does not greatly differ from Jesus of
Nazareth, Osiris of Egypt, the Scandinavian
0dn, the Chinese FOhi, or the Hindoo Bud
dha. He was the first of long line of
Kings, who gradually subdued the sur
rounding tribes and established sun-worship
in place of whatever might have been the
more ancient religion. They built four
highways that still remain, leading from
Cuzco to the four cardinal points, and
polaaae walls
and forts.
WERE HUMANE CoNQUERoRs.
When their armies had conquered a
province, they brought the idols of the tfibe
together with the chiefs and their families,
to CuzeO, where they were treated with
every mark of kindness and respect; and
when the chiefs had been thoroughly in
structed concerning the power of the Inca
and the spirit of his regime, they were sent
back to their former homes and were often
restored to their official positions as repre-
sentatives of the Government at Cuzco.
Taxes were reduced in the conquered prov
inces, the poor cared for, the children in
structed in the language of the empire, and
though greatest respect was shown for the
more ancient forms of worship, the people
were carefully taught the religion of the
lncas.
&To make sure that there would be no
future rebellion among the conquered ma
ton, a colony of several thousand AymaraeS
was sent to live among them, and as many
of the subjugated people were brought to
the towns whence these colonists were
taken, where they were given great advan-
tages. including large tracts of land exempt
from taxation, and were made to feel in
every way that the transfer had been for
their benefit. Thus it happens that so many
Quichuas ara found down here among the
AymaraeS and vice versa. Though living
side by side for centuries these two great
nations have preserved their original DIS
tlnctness, never uniting in marriage and
seldom associatiug, and such a thing as the
admiXtnre of either race with European
blood was never known.
DRESS OF TWO NATIONS.
Though much alike in personal appear
ance, except that the Aymara men are taller
and more powerful than the Quichuas and
their women are, If possible, ugler, one can
distinguish sciOns of the two races az
I glance, wherever met. by "the cut of the
Glib" so to speak. The Quichua men wear
very short trousers, barely reaching to the
knee, ponchos. or blankets, striped with
brilliant cOlOrS, their heads thrust through
a slit in the middle, and hats, if any, a
great deal too small for their heads. Each
woman OF the tribe is always seen with
| bundle at her back, made by blanket
folded in peculiar fashion. in which she can
carry not only her baby, but all the house.
hold goods. She is always bareheaded,
her frOwsy black hair braided with white
strings, the latter braided together at the
ends.
The male Aymara wears very wide trnu-
sers of black wooden, slit a long way up the
leg, either at the back or the outer side, and
underneath full drawers of coarse white cot
ton, which flop about his ankles as he walks.
On his feet are rawhide sandals; on his
head knitted cap of brilliant colors, cone
shaped with ear-laps and long point
which bangles gracefully over his nose or
hobs about gaily when the wearer is on his
usual dog-trot Their woman universally
wear dresses of dark blue flannel quite
short and beautifully shirred from the
waist down over the hips. The bodice,
made separate from the skirt, is sort OF
Tyrolean jacket of the same coarse blue
flannel, woven by themselves, very short,
low-necked and barely coming together at
the bosom, showing all around tho white
chemise beneath.
SUPERSTITION STILL ABoUNDs.
Though all these Indians are intensely
religious, many of their customs and super
stitions show traces Of the ancient faith of
their fathers. To cite few of them in the