All this while Spain had been unceasing in her demands for gold and
silver, and it was necessary to work the mines strenuously in order to
satisfy the greed of the Mother Country. As time went on, indeed, the
difficulties which lay in the path of a conscientious Viceroy tended to
increase rather than to diminish. It is true that the country did not
now depend entirely for its prosperity upon its gold, for the valuable
drugs and other natural products were now obtaining some recognition,
and the cereals and general agricultural growths introduced from Europe
were now becoming of genuine importance. Other matters, however, were
beginning to cause deep anxiety to the ruling Powers. The buccaneers had
now made their appearance in the Pacific, and the alarm spread by their
presence frequently caused an entire cessation of trade. The jealousies,
moreover, between the Spaniards and the colonials tended to increase, as
the arrogance of the former grew and the resentment of the latter
deepened.
True to her policy to discourage any attempt at authority on the part of
the colonists, Spain had continued strenuously to refuse to appoint any
but Spaniards to the highest posts. No single Viceroy, for instance,
from first to last, was American born, although the holders of this high
office included in their numbers four grandees, two priests, one Bishop,
one Archbishop, three licentiates, and a number of military officers.
After a while, as was only natural, the tendency arose to split up the
main areas of colonial government. Thus, in 1718, the Viceroyalty of
Santa Fe de Bogota was established, and in 1777 that of Buenos Aires.
Neither of these innovations had occurred a day too soon. With the
growing population and the increasing political and commercial
importance of the Continent, the strained machinery with which it had
been attempted to govern all matters from a single centre had broken
down and become useless so far as the remoter provinces were concerned.
In the course of the settlements and of the industrial progress, such as
it was, the claims and rights of the aborigines had become a negligible
factor. Indeed, from any but an industrial point of view, the existence
of the descendants of the Incas had practically been ignored.
In 1632 a minor revolution of Indians occurred, which resulted in a
quaint species of naval engagement on Lake Titicaca, with the native
_balsas_, or rafts, posing as diminutive battleships. In 1661 there was
another outbreak. This was organized by Antonio Gallado, who succeeded
in gaining possession of the town of La Paz, in which neighbourhood the
Spanish authority became almost extinct for three years.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account