While Pizarro Continued To Reside In Caxamarca, He Sent Out His Brother
Ferdinand With A Party Of Cavalry To Discover The Country, Who Went As Far
As Pachacamac, About A Hundred Leagues From Caxamarca.
In the district of
Huamachucos, Ferdinand met with Hlescas, one of the brothers of Atahualpa,
who was escorting a
Prodigious quantity of gold to Caxamarca, part of the
ransom of the captive inca, to the value of two or three millions at the
least, without counting an immense quantity of silver[17]. He continued
his journey from Huamachucos to Pachacamac, not far to the south of where
Lima now stands, through several difficult and dangerous passes; when he
learnt that one of the generals of Atahualpa, named Cilicuchima was
stationed with a large army at a place about forty leagues from thence.
Ferdinand Pizarro sent a message to the Peruvian general to request that
he would come to speak with him; and as Cilicuchima refused, Ferdinand
took the resolution to wait upon him in person. This was considered by
many as extremely rash and imprudent, to trust himself in the hands of a
barbarous and powerful enemy. He was successful however in the attempt, as
by various representations and promises, he prevailed on the Peruvian
general to dismiss his army, and to go along with him to Caxamarca to
wait upon his sovereign Atahualpa. To shorten their journey, they took a
very difficult route through mountains covered with snow, where they were
in danger of perishing with cold.
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