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Prescott, William Hickling, 1796-1859

"History of the Conquest of Peru; with a preliminary view of the civilization of the Incas"


Thus the First Part of his work, as it was now called, was
brought down to the commencement of the Second, and the whole
presented a complete picture of the distractions of the nation,
till a new order of things was introduced, and tranquillity was
permanently established throughout the country.
The diction is sufficiently plain, not aspiring to rhetorical
beauties beyond the reach of its author, and out of keeping with
the simple character of a chronicle. The sentences are arranged
with more art than in most of the unwieldy compositions of the
time; and, while there is no attempt at erudition or philosophic
speculation, the current of events flows on in an orderly manner,
tolerably prolix, it is true, but leaving a clear and
intelligible impression on the mind of the reader. No history of
that period compares with it in the copiousness of its details;
and it has accordingly been resorted to by later compilers, as an
inexhaustible reservoir for the supply of their own pages; a
circumstance that may be thought of itself to bear no slight
testimony to the general fidelity, as well as fulness, of the
narrative. - The Chronicle of Fernandez, thus arranged in two
parts, under the general title of Historia del Peru, was given to
the world in the author's lifetime, at Seville, in 1571, in one
volume, folio, being the edition used in the preparation of this
work.
Appendix
No. I
Description Of The Royal Progresses Of The Incas; Extracted From
Sarmiento's Relacion, Ms.


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