s been the cause of all the riots and the
revolt of the Indians, and of the deaths which have occurred among
the Spaniards. I have given your Majesty news of this, grieving
for the evils which have sprung from it. For the Indians of this
province, in those places where the name of God has never entered,
nor that of your Majesty, must feel resentful where they have seen
neither ministers of instruction nor of justice; but only see that
each year a dozen of soldiers with arquebuses come to their houses
to take their property away from them, and the food upon which they
live, although their all is little enough. These collectors afflict,
maltreat, and torment them, and so leave them, until they return
another year to do the same. What else can these natives think of us,
but that we are tyrants, and that we come only to make our gain out
of their property and their persons? And this will be very difficult
to remedy, so distant from the rest are some of the encomiendas,
with water between, and so little fear of God have those who make
the collections. It may be that with the arrival of the new governor
there will be much improvement in this; although if he does not bear
an order from your Majesty to change some measures which up to the
present have been in force, I have no hope of betterment.

In the next to the last clause of this letter your Majesty says that
to remedy the present lack of instruction is my own special obligation,
which I confess; and I have so appreciated this that, seeing the great
present need of instruction and the little help which I can offer,
I am so disturbed and so filled with anxiety that, if I were able to
leave the bishopric, I would try to flee from it. But if, inasmuch as
your Majesty declares to me my obligation, and puts in my charge what
is lacking, you should give me, together with it, authority to right
affairs, your Majesty would be relieved of responsibility, and I of
anxiety, other than to make progress in learning my obligations. If
I do not have authority and power to remedy this, I must live all my
life in anxiety and perturbation of spirit, because every year I see
them collect tribute from a race that is never given to understand
why it is collected; nor is there any hope that they may be able to
have instruction, because of the great difficulty there is in giving
it to them. Knowing that this is the legitimate title which we have
in seeking tribute, your Majesty may see what peac