order to strike terror. They had warlike instruments of mufic, fuch as fea-fhells, flutes made of large canes, and a fort of drum made of the trunk of a tree hollow'd. Their battalions confifted of great numbers crouded together, without even the appearance of order. They attacked with terrible outcries in order to intimidate the enemy; a practice prompted by nature, and formerly used by many nations. It was not defpifed even by the Romans; for Cato the elder was wont to fay, that he had obtained more victories by the throats of his foldiers, than by their fwords; and Cæfar applauds his own foldiers, above thofe of Pompey, for their warlike fhouts. Eagerness to engage is vented in loud cries: and the effects are excellent: they redouble the ardor of those who attack, and strike terror into the cnemy.

Their armies were formed with eafe: the princes of the empire, with the cacics or governors of provinces, were obliged to repair to the general rendezvous, cach with his quota of men.

Their fortifications were trunks of large trees, fixed in the ground like palifades, leaving

leaving no intervals but what were barely fufficient for discharging their arrows upon the

enemy.

Military orders were inftituted, with peculiar habits as marks of diftinction and honour; and each cavalier bore the device of his order, painted upon his robe, or fixed to it. Montezuma founded a new order of knighthood, into which princes. only were admitted, or nobles defcended from the royal stock; and as a token of its fuperiority, he became one of its members. The knights of that order had part of their hair bound with a red ribbon, to which a taffel was fixed hanging down to the fhoulder. Every new exploit was honoured with an additional taffel; which made the knights with ardor embrace every opportunity to fignalize themfelves. As nothing can be better contrived than fuch a regulation for fupporting a military fpirit, the Mexicans would have been invincible had they understood the order of battle: for want of which that potent empire fell a prey to a handful of strangers. I differ from thofe who afcribe that event to the fire-arms of the Spaniards, and to their horfes. Thefe could not be more terrible

to the Mexicans, than elephants were at first to the Romans: but familiarity with thefe unwieldy animals, restored to the Romans their wonted courage; and the Mexicans probably would have behaved like the Romans, had they equalled the Romans in the art of war.

When that illuftrious people, by their own genius without borrowing from others, had made fuch proficiency in the arts of peace, as well as of war; is it not ftrange, that with refpect to religion they were no better than favages? They not only practifed human facrifices, but dreffed and ate the flesh of thofe that were facrificed. Their great temple was contrived to raise horror: upon the walls were crouded the figures of noxious ferpents : the heads of perfons facrificed were stuck up in different places, and carefully renewed when wafted by time. There were eight temples in the city, nearly of the fame architecture; 2000 of a finaller fize, dedicated to different idols; fcarce a street without a tutelar deity; nor a calamity that had not an altar, to which the diftreffed might have recourfe for a remedy. Unparallelled ignorance and ftupidity, VOL. III, obliged

Y

obliged every Emperor, at his coronation, to fwear, that there should be no unfeasonable rains, no overflowing of rivers, no fields affected with fterility, nor any man hurt with the bad influences of the fun. In fhort, it was a flavish religion, built upon fear, not love. At the fame time, they believed the immortality of the foul, and rewards and punishments in a future ftate; which made them bury with their dead, quantities of gold and filver for defraying the expence of their journey; and also made them put to death fome of their fervants to attend them. Women fometimes, actuated with the fame belief, were authors of their own death, in order to accompany their hufbands.

The author we chiefly rely on for an account of Peru is Garcilaffo de la Vega: tho' he may be justly fufpected of partiality; for, being of the Inca race, he beflows on the Peruvian government, improvements of later times. The articles that appear the leaft fufpicious are what follow.

The principle of the Peruvian constitution feems to have been an Agrarian law

of

of the ftrictest kind. To the fovereign was first allotted a large proportion of land, for defraying the expences of government; and the remainder was divided among his fubjects, in proportion to the number of each family. Thefe portions were not alienable the fovereign was held proprietor of the whole, as in the feudal fyftem; and from time to time the diftribution was varied according to the circumstances of families. This Agrarian law contributed undoubtedly to the populoufness of the kingdom of Peru.

It is a fure fign of improved agriculture, that aqueducts were made by the Peru-, vians for watering their land. Their plough was of wood, a yard long, flat before, round behind, and pointed at the end for piercing the ground. Agriculture feems to have been carried on by united labour lands appropriated for maintaining the poor were firft ploughed; next the portion allotted to foldiers performing duty in the field ; then every man feparately ploughed his own field; after which he affifted his neighbour: they proceeded to the portion of the curaca or lord; and laftly to the King's portion. In the month Y 2

of