Note 1190 — Chapter IV

Prescott (I. p. 98, note) accepted the statement that human sacrifices were offered by the Incas, because six authorities, Sarmiento, Cieza de Leon, Montesinos, Balboa, Ondegardo, and Acosta—outnumbered the single authority on the other side, Garcilasso de la Vega, who, moreover, was believed to be prejudiced owing to his relationship to the Incas. Sarmiento and Cieza de Leon are one and the same, so that the number of authorities for human sacrifices is reduced to five. Cieza de Leon, Montesinos, and Balboa adopted the belief that human sacrifices were offered up, through a misunderstanding of the words yuyac and huahua. Acosta had little or no acquaintance with the language, as is proved by the numerous linguistic blunders in his work. Ondegardo wrote at a time when he scarcely knew the language, and had no interpreters; for it was in 1554, when he was judge at Cuzco. At that time all the annalists and old men had fled into the forests, because of the insurrection of Francisco Hernandez Giron.