Their camp was well victualled, furnishing a
seasonable supply to the royalists, who had nearly expended their
own stock of provisions. There was, moreover, considerable booty
in the way of plate and money; for Pizarro's men, as was not
uncommon in those turbulent times, went, many of them, to the war
with the whole of their worldly wealth, not knowing of any safe
place in which to bestow it. An anecdote is told of one of
Gasca's soldiers, who, seeing a mule running over the field, with
a large pack on his back, seized the animal, and mounted him,
having first thrown away the burden, supposing it to contain
armour, or something of little worth. Another soldier, more
shrewd, picked up the parcel, as his share of the spoil, and
found it contained several thousand gold ducats! It was the
fortune of war. *38
[Footnote 38: Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 7, cap. 8.]
Thus terminated the battle, or rather rout, of Xaquixaguana. The
number of killed and wounded - for some few perished in the
pursuit - was not great; according to most accounts, not
exceeding fifteen killed on the rebel side, and one only on that
of the royalists! and that one, by the carelessness of a
comrade. *39 Never was there a cheaper victory; so bloodless a
termination of a fierce an bloody rebellion! It was gained not
so much by the strength of the victors as by the weakness of the
vanquished. They fell to pieces of their own accord, because
they had no sure ground to stand on.
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