In this he
undoubtedly proposed to himself the example of Cortes, so contagious to
the adventurous spirits of that day, and especially to Pizarro, engaged, as
he was, in a similar enterprise. Yet the hazard assumed by Pizarro was
far greater than that of the Conqueror of Mexico, whose force was nearly
three times as large, while the terrors of the Inca name--however justified
by the result--were as widely spread as those of the Aztecs.
It was doubtless in imitation of the same captivating model, that Pizarro
planned the seizure of Atahuallpa. But the situations of the two Spanish
captains were as dissimilar as the manner in which their acts of violence
were conducted. The wanton massacre of the Peruvians resembled that
perpetrated by Alvarado in Mexico, and might have been attended with
consequences as disastrous, if the Peruvian character had been as fierce
as that of the Aztecs.32 But the blow which roused the latter to madness
broke the tamer spirits of the Peruvians. It was a bold stroke, which left
so much to chance, that it scarcely merits the name of policy.
When Pizarro landed in the country, he found it distracted by a contest
for the crown. It would seem to have been for his interest to play off one
party against the other, throwing his own weight into the scale that suited
him.
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