been prepared have been witnessed all the horses of the King pass by, covered with their silken trappings,[604] and with much adornment of gold and precious stones on their heads, and then all the elephants and yokes of oxen[605] in the middle of the arena[606] in front of the palace. After these have been seen there come thirty-six of the most beautiful of the King's wives covered with gold and pearls, and much work of seed-pearls, and in the hands of each a vessel of gold with a lamp of oil burning in it; and with these women come all the female servants and the other wives of the King, with canes in their hands tipped with gold and with torches burning; and these then retire inside with the King. These women are so richly bedecked with gold and precious stones that they are hardly able to move. In this way during these nine days they are compelled to search for all things which will give pleasure to the King. The King has a thousand wrestlers for these feasts who wrestle before the King, but not in our manner, for they strike and wound each other with two circlets with points[607] which they carry in their hands to strike with, and the one most wounded goes and takes his reward in the shape of a silk cloth,[608] such as the King gives to these wrestlers. They have a captain over them, and they do not perform any other service in the kingdom. And after these nine days are finished the Rao[609] rides out and goes to hold a review of the troops of his captains, and he goes a length of two leagues between the armed men. At the end he dismounts and takes a bow in his hand and shoots three arrows, namely one for the Ydallcao, and another for the King of Cotamuloco,[610] and yet another for the Portuguese; it was his custom to make war on the kingdom lying in the direction where the arrow reached furthest. After this is done the King returns home, and on that day he fasts and with him all the people of the land; and on the next day he goes to the river to bathe with all his people. Within these nine days the King is paid all the rents that he receives from his kingdom; for, as already said, all the land belongs to the King, and from his hand the captains hold it. They make it over to the husbandmen who pay nine-tenths to their lord; and they have no land of their own, for the kingdom belongs entirely to the King;[611] only the captains are put to charges on account of the troops for whom the King makes them responsible, and whom they are obliged to provide in the way of service. Every Saturday the dancing-girls are obliged to go to the palace to dance and posture before the King's idol, which is in the interior of his palace. The people of this country always fast on Saturdays and do not eat all day nor even at night, nor do they drink water, only they may chew a few cloves to sweeten the breath. The King always gives large sums in charity; in the palace there are always two or three thousand Brahmans who are his priests, and to whom the King