Many of them were now suffered to roam
abroad among their native mountains; though Pizarro caused a
considerable number to be reserved for the use of the army. And this
was no small quantity, if, as one of the Conquerors says, a hundred and
fifty of the Peruvian sheep were frequently slaughtered in a day.38
Indeed, the Spaniards were so improvident in their destruction of these
animals, that, in a few years, the superb flocks, nurtured with so much
care by the Peruvian government, had almost disappeared from the
land.39
The party sent to pillage the Inca's pleasure-house brought back a rich
booty in gold and silver, consisting chiefly of plate for the royal table,
which greatly astonished the Spaniards by their size and weight. These,
as well as some large emeralds obtained there, together with the precious
spoils found on the bodies of the Indian nobles who had perished in the
massacre, were placed in safe custody, to be hereafter divided. In the
city of Caxamalca, the troops also found magazines stored with goods,
both cotton and woollen, far superior to any they had seen, for fineness
of texture, and the skill with which the various colors were blended.
They were piled from the floors to the very roofs of the buildings, and in
such quantity, that, after every soldier had provided himself with what he
desired, it made no sensible diminution of the whole amount.
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