Permit at this point, Most Holy Father, a digression.  Your Beatitude will no doubt ask with astonishment how it comes that such uncivilised men, destitute of any knowledge of letters, have preserved for such a long time the tradition of their origin.  This has been possible because from the earliest times, and chiefly in the houses of the caciques; the bovites, that is to say the wise men, have trained the sons of the caciques, teaching them their past history by heart.  In imparting their teaching they carefully distinguish two classes of studies; the first is of a general interest, having to do with the succession of events; the second is of a particular interest, treating of the notable deeds accomplished in time of peace or time of war by their fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, and all their ancestors.  Each one of these exploits is commemorated in poems written in their language.  These poems are called arreytos.  As with us the guitar player, so with them the drummers accompany these arreytos and lead singing choirs.  Their drums are called maguay.  Some of the arreytos are love songs, others are elegies, and others are war songs; and each is sung to an appropriate air.  They also love to dance, but they are more agile than we are; first, because nothing pleases them better than dancing and, secondly, because they are naked, and untrammelled by clothing.  Some of the arreytos composed by their ancestors predicted our arrival, and these poems resembling elegies lament their ruin.  “Magnacochios [clothed men] shall disembark in the island armed with swords and with one stroke cut a man in two, and our descendants shall bend beneath their yoke.”

I really am not very much astonished that their ancestors predicted the slavery of their descendants, if everything told concerning their familiar relations with devils is true.  I discussed this subject at length in the ninth book of my First Decade, when treating of the zemes, that is to say the idols they worship.  Since their zemes have been taken away the natives admit they no longer see spectres; and our compatriots believe this is due to the sign of the cross, with which they are all armed when washed in the waters of baptism.

All the islanders attach great importance to know the frontiers and limits of the different tribes.  It is generally the mitaines, that is to say nobles, as they are called, who attend to this duty, and they are very skilful in measuring their properties and estates.  The people have no other occupation than sowing and harvesting.  They are skillful fishermen, and every day during the whole year they dive into the streams, passing as much time in the water as on land.  They are not neglectful, however, of hunting, they have, as we have already said, utias, which resemble small rabbits, and iguana serpents, which I described in my First Decade.  These latter resemble crocodiles and are eight feet long, living on land and having a good flavour.  Innumerable birds are found in all the islands:  pigeons, ducks, geese, and herons.  The parrots are as plentiful here as sparrows amongst us.  Each cacique assigns different occupations to his different subjects, some being sent hunting, others to fish, others to cultivate the fields.  But let us return to the names.