How the news arrived at Lima that Vaca de Castro had reached the river of San Juan, how this was received by those of Chile, and what else happened at that time in the city of the Kings.

WHEN the President Vaca de Castro sailed from Panamá, several ships went in company with him, as I have already related. At the Ancón de Sardinas some [91]were lost in a storm. The galleon bore up for Buenaventura, but others, being smaller and better sailers, were able to make southing and reach the port of Lima. There they passed the news that the President was coming by sea, but had encountered terrible weather, and they did not know whether he was lost or had returned to Panamá, or had put into the port of Buenaventura. At this news, the Marquis and those of his party were not a little pleased. But those of Chile, when they heard it, complained of their bad luck. For they were hopefully expecting him to arrive at an early date and make amends for the injustice that had been done in killing [the Adelantado] Don Diego [de Almagro], and in not giving them any repartimientos, notwithstanding they had done good service and made discoveries in that land. They went about very sad and downcast. They were reduced to great straits, for between ten or twelve of them there was but one cloak, which they went out in by turns. The citizens of Lima were so indifferent that, though they saw them almost dying of hunger, they did not help them with a single thing, nor would they, even in their own homes, offer them any food.

When St. John\'s Day drew near, the citizens rode out on horseback to make merry, but a very bad prognostic happened. It was this: Antonio Picado[49] took up behind him on his horse a half-witted fellow, who at the time was in Lima, named Juan de Lepe. He had scarcely mounted when Lepe cried out, "This is the justice that is ordered to be done this man." When the men of Chile heard it they rejoiced, saying that they hoped the utterance of that ninny would prove to be a prophecy, and that they would be avenged of their enemies by such words as those coming true.

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People want to say that at this time the men of Chile, seeing themselves so overlooked, and that no judge before whom they could state their grievances had come, were conspiring among themselves to murder the Marquis, and that this very St. John\'s Day was the time selected. It is further said that the good cavalier Cristóbal de Sotelo prevented it, saying that it was not desirable to do such an act then. It is also said that the Marquis had resolved to banish Don Diego[50] and Juan de Herrada,[51] and to execute justice on those who were seen to go about fomenting strife. Well! neither the one story nor the other is true. It is well known to those who lived at that time that the Marquis often went to a mill which he had ordered to be built on the banks of the river that flows by the city, accompanied only by an unarmed page. Being thus unguarded, it would have been easy for assassins to kill him if they had wanted to do so. Although some men talked of avenging the death of Almagro, it had not then been determined to murder the Marquis. Neither can we believe, nor would it be fair to affirm, that the Marquis intended to banish them, or to put anyone to death; for we know that many of his friends advised him to adopt such measures, and that he told them such a thing would never be done by him, because it would at once be said that he did so that there might be no one to plead in the residencia.[52] In[93] the city there was some commotion, accompanied by profound silence on the part of the Indians, who said that the Marquis\'s last day was at hand, when he would be murdered by the men of Chile. The same was common talk in the marketplaces, and some Indian women repeated it to Spaniards who were their house-masters. It is also said that the favourite, Garcí Díaz, heard it from an Indian girl and warned the Marquis about it. But Pizarro laughed, and said that no attention should be paid to such Indian gossip. After some further discussion respecting these rumours, the Marquis ordered the Bishop to have Juan de Herrada fetched, and to bring him before him on the same St. John\'s Day, in the afternoon. Four or five days before this, Juan de Herrada heard that the Marquis was collecting arms, and intended to seize the men of Chile or banish them, or kill certain of them, but he concealed what he had heard. He consulted with Cristóbal de Sotelo, Francisco de Chaves, a............