As he drew near, the old
warrior, raising his hands to heaven, exclaimed, - "Would that I
had been here! - this would not then have happened"; then,
kneeling down, he kissed the hands and feet of his royal master,
and bathed them with his tears. Atahuallpa, on his part,
betrayed not the least emotion, and showed no other sign of
satisfaction at the presence of his favorite counsellor, than by
simply bidding him welcome. The cold demeanour of the monarch
contrasted strangely with the loyal sensibility of the subject.
*15
[Footnote 15: Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., Ms.
"The like of it," exclaims Estete. "was never before seen since
the Indies were discovered." Ibid., p. 231.]
The rank of the Inca placed him at an immeasurable distance above
the proudest of his vassals; and the Spaniards had repeated
occasion to admire the ascendency which, even in his present
fallen fortunes, he maintained over his people, and the awe with
which they approached him. Pedro Pizarro records an interview,
at which he was present, between Atahuallpa and one of his great
nobles, who had obtained leave to visit some remote part of the
country on condition of returning by a certain day. He was
detained somewhat beyond the appointed time, and, on entering the
presence with a small propitiatory gift for his sovereign, his
knees shook so violently, that it seemed, says the chronicler, as
if he would have fallen to the ground. His master, however,
received him kindly, and dismissed him without a word of rebuke.
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