The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-05-19
IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE lNCAS
Wonderful Remains In The Heart of the Andes of
The Most Civilized of The Red Race.
CuZco, Peru.

40 with me this bright sunday
ming and take a look at the site or
M! nao ancient capital of the lncas, tina
ro,derful family OF kings VINO ru!eo
,ha most OF western South America
ut 500 years ago. Like a rullng
aDoas,ies Of Japan and China and al
49, avery other great empire on
MI they believed themselves to
90 dascended from the gods. They
,o,,ght they were the offspring OF
-. ~ s7,n and they called themselves the
30 children. They a a tradition
= : m how they sprang into existence
IN one Of the islands OF Lake I1tlcaca
and from there marcheo on. ONO me
ndaan nlateau and subdued and civil
if1ed the then savages. They came
- 80 "a Cuzco. at the head Of a beau
Ell valley in the heart Of the Andes.
I'D established a capital. they gra-
lily CONQUERED the regions about
It'll their empire extended far be-
V.ond Quito. in Ecuador. which is 500
~ 700 miles south Of the Panama
0aral to below where the capital of
chile now stands. They nao sueJects
all along the eastern slopes OF the
Amazon. and the western limits OF
thnir rule were the ShOres of the
r,irhtv Pacific. AT the time h a Co
Iuubus came to America, or a little
iatnr when PiZarro the brutal Spanish
butcher general came to Peru n
conquered them. they governed a
country as long as the distance be-
tween the Arctic ocean and the SHORES
Of Lake Erie, a ountry Wnlcn was
Iarper than all of the United States
east Of the Mississippi valley and
which. had it been dropped down in
Europe. would have more than cover
cd Germany and France, Norway and
sweden, Austria-Hungary and the
Spanish peninsula.
Al the time they were O~VerthrOWn
nv the SpaniardS the Incas had divid-
ed this country into provinces. They
had viceroys and subordinate officials
and they had tens Of millions OF sub
iects. They had not only subdued the
eavages but had civilized them.
The subjects Of the Incas were a
nation of farmers, mechanics and ar
tisans. They had a religion that rec
ognized the sun as the lord OF the
world, and their emperor as his ruler
on earth. They had temples to the
sun. some Of which were plated will
gold. and within which was an image
of the sun of pure gold.
The people believed in this religion
ard they were piOuS n peacefui
They gave a part of their time to tn
work for the church and q part To-
the sick and the widows and orphans
They worked also for the government
and, last of all, for themselves ant
their families. They worked we'll, toe
They conquered the land. They irri
gated the deserts, and today you ma,
see the remains of their aqueducts o
stone slabs. neatly fitted together
which carried the water over million
OF acres. They had n aqueduct tina
was 500 miles long. Their irrigatin
canals ran not only along the side
of the mountains, but they cut tun
nels through them and as / rode t
Cuzco, along the high plateau, / s a
thousands Of acres of terraces, no.
gone to ruin and almost a deser
which these people had made to bios
som like the rose. Such terraces ar
seen on the sides OF the mountain
above almost every Peruvian vale
cf the plateau and along the we:
coast. They run UP the slopes lk
so many steps~the earth being hel
back by stone walls.
The subjects of the Incas were
nation of shepherds. They had mi
lions Of alpacas and llamas, and the
also used the wool of the Vicuna
which they trapped or shot in tt
mountains. They were a nation
pottcrs. They made beautiful We
sells of clay and they were also skIile
in the working of copper, silver al
gold. | have seen here some of II
FOOLS which they used in erecting the
buildings. They had a way of ten
pering an alloy of copper and tin
that the tools made Of it a an eds
like a razor and could work the har
est Of stone. Further or in this lie
ter Will describe some OF their wO
dertul walls, which still stand. Th
are more accurately cut than tho
OF the great buildings at Washingto
aud blocks weighing tons are nit
together like a mosaic. l have Sc
stones hat are solid blocks twice
h'sh rs q man upon horseback a.
twelve feet in thickness, and have e
a"lned buildings that are put toSet
er without mortar Ink fitted me
evenly than were the tOmbs OF t
egyptian kings found in the pyi
mids.
but ii would take a large boob
describe the wonders Of the Inca II
ana the many phases Of its clvlili
uon. In this letter I a show y
ONLY c,nan 80 L. -----sA ~, THAI nv