The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1895-05-31
INcA'S NORTHERN CAPITAL.
Peru's Old City In Which the Modern and
Ancient Are Mingled.


feet and population of about fifty
thousand, mostly Indians Under the
sway of the lncas there are said to
have been three hundred thousand in.
habitantS We are so accustomed &c
associate the place with Prescott's gor.
geous pictures and travellers descrip-
tions of the ancient ruins, that we are
apt to forget the modern city. but ii
soon makes its presence felt by the Wis.
itor, There can be no dirtier city on
earth. So-called azequias run through
the steep narrow streets. They might
suggest cleanliness, but they are in
reality only open sewers. The side al.
leys are impossible. The famous
steuches Of Cologne would be far out
of the running in Cuzcc-and the city
is only saved from disastrous epidemic
by its high altitude and by the con-
slant fumigatiou of the chimneyless
houses from their kitchen fires of llama
dung.
An enormous plaza. faced by the
great cathedral and the Church of the
Jesuits. occupies the center of the town
II serves as a MARKET place and in the
early hours Of 4 or -ht mornin : it pre-
sents a gay and busy p.c,ure as the
Indians gather from near and far Il
purchase from ~ market women. " -
spread theIr war upoa tAe pavement
under huce uTlh.t..g> that make the
square look TX, a nu,hroom-5ed.
But everything in the modern city
recalls tae ancient capital. All OF the
prime pal caurc ", are erected upon
the wallis aaj foam ,atjonS OF former
temples an palaces anu most of the
private buildings are largely con-
,tructei af eroln> dragged from old
uin>. In ne. preserved relic of the
iucau per- /; = ghc for; reSs of Sacsahua-
nan. whicn offered 50 stubborn a re-
-.>;ance q Pizarro and his men. 1t is
" great extent. and embraces the
whole Of high hi+ which dominates
tr2to on the north. Three sides of
,hi> elevation. Which are so PERCEPTIONS
u 10 he almost insurmountable. are
je'endej by successive lines of stone
walls one a hove the other. four hun
dreu wards in len til. OF perfect work.
nan-h'p and great strength. After
the capture OF the stronghold. the
SpaniardS reduced the height of these
walls hut the plan OF the works is
still easy 10 follow On the northeast
side Of the hill the approach is more
gradual, and here three parallel lines
of wall We're constructed of such stu.
pendouS proportions and of such mas
sive detail that il is hard to believe
that they We're OF human, to saw moth
ing of oarbaric origin. Enormous
rocks. hundreds of tons in weight, and
OF the hardest grain. have been cut
and polished and built together in a
manner never elsewhere equaled BY
the art of man. The most curious
feature is that no two of these gigantic
blocks (some Of them are nearly twenty
feet in height are of the same shape;
they vary from triangles to pentagons,
yet they are fitted to one another with
such nicely and exactness that it is i'm.
possible to pass knife blade anywhere
between the joints. 1t seems incred.
iele that Notifications of such strength.
more than sufficient to resist modern
artillery, could have been designed by
people whose only weapons were
spears and clubs and arrows.
In front of this part of the fortress
spreads wide plain, covered with i'm
mense outcroppings Of native rock,
which have been fashioned into ranges
of seats and into pulpit-like platforms
reached by narrow stairways. The
place was probably the scene of ma
tional gatherings. All the epithets Of
vastness in the language would fail to
convey an approximate idea Of all these
marvellous works
Within the city itself the most i'm.
portant remains are those of the
famous Temple of the Sun. part Of
which now form the church and mon
astery of the Dominican friars. But
the splendor of the past is gone for
ever. The Spaniards never improve
anything Much of the perfect old
masonry'is still to be seen, however.
and what Is now the cloister was once
sacYed Enclosure of the temple. The
chapels formerly dedicated to the
worship of the moon, the stars, the
rainbow and the thunder are to-day
used as slumber rooms or priests quar-
tiers. and neighboring nunnery once
sheltered the virgins Of the sun god.
Some of the churches erected by the
Spanisrds on the foundations of an
eient structures are not without merit.
and most of them contain many things
worth seeing There are about thirty
in all, besisies numerous converts and
other religious institutions. 1t is
worth while to study closely even the
NEST .uniAviting house In CuEco. For
all their present dilspidation, many of
them were formerly the palaces of the
Spanish admirals, generals and hidal-
Cos Dingy portals are often we'll
preserved Inean gateways, and lead
70 ceurtysrds where fine stone stair
ways mount TO lattieed balconies which
are fall Of suggestions of romance.
Every Saturday afternoon in the
plaza Of San Francisco the country
people hold baratillo-a word which
nigh. be translated bargain sale.
Here in addition to native products of
ell kinds, are often to be seen paintings
Of sil kinds. erucihxes, ivory carvings
and other objects stolen from churches
and converts, which may be bought
for song
Scarcely dozen travellers visit Cuzco
in q decade Many Of the old families
OF the city boast Of descent from the
conquerors but the strain is usually
strongly tainted with Indian blood.
The main commerce, which is largely
controlled by Germans. Is in cocoa
leaves and other tropical products